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| Brisket on a bed of roast vegetables with barbecue sauce at Texas Brisket, Kikuyu |
This review has been updated after a number of you suggested I try the brisket at County2County.
Brisket is one of the toughest cuts in a cow, from around the belly. It is so tough that it has to be smoked for about 16 hours to tenderise. But that there, is the catch.
12 to 16 hours later, it is the most flavourful and softest cut you will ever have. So full of flavour and so soft you can pick it apart with your fingers.
However, due to the long cooking time involved, only a few places offer brisket in Nairobi.
The best so far is Texas Brisket which is located within Kikuyu Railway station.
They do the meat for a proper 16 hours, and will usually have a fatty or non-fatty portion. The fatty portions are more tasty. A 500 gram serving goes for KSh. 900 and a 1 KG order comes with a serving of free fries. Their brisket has a well smoked exterior coupled with a very juicy interior and is served on a bed of roast vegetables.
Texas Brisket is also the most affordable. If going there past noon on a Saturday, it is advisable to book your order as the brisket is popular and runs out quite early.
Coming highly recommended is Bali's Best along Magadi Road, next to Total Magadi Road. Despite it being highly recommended even ahead of Texas Barbecue, it still has some way to go to match our reigning number one.
Bali's Best brisket does sport a rich smoky and beefy flavour, and the meat was tender and juicy. The brisket is presented on a hot skillet alongside roast vegetables and a barbecue sauce. Servings start at KSh. 1,000 for half a kg with no accompaniment. A single chips servings is KSh. 250.
Taking third place is County2County in Westlands along Westlands Road helped along by its balanced smokey, beefy flavour with the bits of fat rendering to the rich taste. It could do with a little more tenderness though.
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| Brisket at County2County with coleslaw along Westlands Road |
County2County prices their brisket at 1,900 shillings for half a kilo with accompaniment, and 3,000 for a full KG with no accompaniment, again making it pricier to our first 2 contenders. They serve brisket on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. The brisket is served with a barbecue sauce, some red cabbage coleslaw and a choice of fries, wedges or ugali.
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| The smoker at County2County |
Fourth ranked is Smokehouse Barbeque located at Saifee Park around Bogani Lane in Karen. The cuts are a little tough and might need more time in the smoker. Other than the chewiness, they still pack the flavour of a nice brisket. Pricing starts at KSh. 1,000 for a quarter KG (250 grams) and KSh. 1,600 for 400 grams. A little bit more smoke and they move higher up the ranking.
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| Brisket at Smokehouse, Saifee Park |
(See note below about Barbeque Pit) At fifth place in our ranking are Barbeque Pit, located in Nairobi West opposite T Mall, at Magharibi Place. Interesting enough, according to my very trusted reviewer, they had the best spiced brisket. They however need more hours on the grill to make the cut and move higher up the ranking.
A kilo at Barbeque Pit costs about 2,000 shillings. Being next to Maru's Bhajias makes for a nice accompaniment of bhajias. They however hold the highest promise if they were to hold that meat to the smoke just for a little bit longer. Should they hit the 16 hours promised time, their brisket threatens to overthrow the hallowed Texas Brisket.
That wraps up our Nairobi Brisket Review. If you really want to have Brisket, I recommend you head over to Texas Brisket in Kikuyu or to Bali's Best along Magadi Road.
County2County and Smokehouse are great alternatives, though you'll want to insist the smoking takes a little longer.
Favouring County2County is the proximity to town/Westlands. By the time of updating this piece, it appears Nairobi Barbecue Pit no longer offer the brisket.
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