The Namibian Institute of Culinary Education (NICE)
2 Mozart Street
Windhoek, Namibia
(264) 61-300 710
www.nice.com.na
I like to visit culinary academies. The food may be imperfect, the service may be a bit off, but often you get a good meal for a relatively low cost and the money helps to support students’ education. So when I found the National Institute for Culinary Education (NICE) in Windhoek, Namibia, I was eager to try it out, especially reading that it was operated by Wolwedans, the exceptional safari lodge group in the Namib Desert. The school trains students to work at safari lodges at Wolwedans and at other camps. The host at my hotel, after I gave her a selection of three restaurants in the area I was considering, reaffirmed my selection of NICE without so much as a brief pause.
The orange-flavored butternut soup did not have any orange flavor that I discerned, but it was good, creamy and baked potato chips were a nice topping.
The tomato-mozzarella ravioli in tomato sauce was the miss as it came out of the kitchen quite bland. Salt and pepper made it more flavorful, but it would have been preferable to have this come out well-seasoned.
The food and service may be a bit hit-and-miss, but overall the National Institute for Culinary Education gets high marks and is a worthwhile stop in Windhoek.
2 Mozart Street
Windhoek, Namibia
(264) 61-300 710
www.nice.com.na
I like to visit culinary academies. The food may be imperfect, the service may be a bit off, but often you get a good meal for a relatively low cost and the money helps to support students’ education. So when I found the National Institute for Culinary Education (NICE) in Windhoek, Namibia, I was eager to try it out, especially reading that it was operated by Wolwedans, the exceptional safari lodge group in the Namib Desert. The school trains students to work at safari lodges at Wolwedans and at other camps. The host at my hotel, after I gave her a selection of three restaurants in the area I was considering, reaffirmed my selection of NICE without so much as a brief pause.
The restaurant is in a refurbished home. As a result there are several separated dining rooms, with each holding no more than about 20 guests. With all the small rooms, though the restaurant was quite full, there was very little noise and each dining room had an intimate feel to it. All of the dining rooms are warmly decorated and attractive – far moreso than most culinary academies I’d visited, where you might be dining in a classroom.
I had written the restaurant in advance to ask if they could accommodate vegetarians. I received back the menu with a few items marked that they could be modified for vegetarians.
The waiters are not students; only the chefs are. I was far more forgiving of the inattentive service (no checking back on the quality of the food, little attention paid to drink refills) until I found this out. The first dish out of the kitchen was quite tasty - vegetable tempura served on skewers with soy sauce.
The orange-flavored butternut soup did not have any orange flavor that I discerned, but it was good, creamy and baked potato chips were a nice topping.
The tomato-mozzarella ravioli in tomato sauce was the miss as it came out of the kitchen quite bland. Salt and pepper made it more flavorful, but it would have been preferable to have this come out well-seasoned.The food and service may be a bit hit-and-miss, but overall the National Institute for Culinary Education gets high marks and is a worthwhile stop in Windhoek.
