Talisman

April 23, 2025

Talisman is a beautiful restaurant located in Karen. It’s been around for as long as I can remember, I actually can’t recall a time when Talisman didn’t exist. What started out as a small family restaurant back in the 90s has since grown into one of the most iconic restaurants in this city.

The house turned restaurant is settled in a beautiful corner of the Karen neighbourhood. There are cozy indoor seating options and the restaurant opens up to a beautiful outdoor setting surrounded by greenery and pockets of seating for either big or small groups. I love the eclectic decor style Talisman embodies, it’s giving very bohemian chic and I especially love the art work they have displayed throughout the restaurant.

The menu is quite diverse with continental dishes, pan-Asian fusion dishes and classic dishes as well. Here’s what we decided to have: feta & coriander samosas (KSH200 per samosa), Talisman beef burger (KSH2,200), Chinese stir-fry chilli beef (KSH2,600) and the rhubarb and apple crumble (KSH1,450).

Now y’all know how much I sing about the feta samosas at Talisman… after not being there for possibly over two years, they’re still as good as I remember. Nobody does the feta coriander combo like Talisman does and many have tried but these samosas will always be #1 in my book.

The Chinese stir-fry chilli beef was super tasty, super chilli (finally a place that actually serves spices in the food they say is spicy lol) and flavourful too. The portion was a healthy one, I couldn’t finish it, had to save some for later. The burger itself is equally a big portion and I added bacon to mine, got rid of the gherkins (don’t kill me pls) and it also has mushrooms and cheese and mushroom sauce… all this plus a side of fries, you can see how that’s such a big meal. This was also not finished, I ate half and had to doggy bag the other half.

Special mention to their passion juice, I really enjoyed it, it was super fresh and perfectly tart The Rhubarb apple crumble with vanilla ice cream was very delicious! I didn’t taste the rhubarb as much (maybe I don’t know what it tastes like) but the apple part was very yum especially paired with the vanilla bean ice cream

Now on to the service - special shout out to Dennis who was our server that day. He did not skip a beat! We were seated in a corner where it’s easy to forget that we were there but he was on it; checking in every couple of minutes, I could see that he was serving other tables as well but he did not lose sight of us once. We were here on a Sunday afternoon so the place was full and very busy but the service was not lacking at all. The food was served quickly, anything we needed was provided plus more. I really just appreciate efficient service especially in a place where you’d think it would be a bit tricky for the staff to manage when it’s full. Talisman has that training down to a T.

This is a great place for family lunches and dinners, for celebrating special occasions and very perfect for date nights. Reservations are required to assure yourself a spot. The price tag is very much on the higher end so come prepared to spend some coins but you will not regret it at all, their food standards (to me) haven’t changed since my last time there, the service is impeccable and the ambience provides such a nice cozy atmosphere, you can be here for hours without noticing the time go by. I highly recommend Talisman.