Where to watch the World Cup

The first weekend of the World Cup proved to be an exciting one.  I watched way more soccer than I've probably seen in my entire life combined, but am now a football fanatic.  I love that the game is cut and dry and easy to follow, constantly moving with no annoying time-outs, and over and done within 90-100 minutes.  Some of the places we watched the games this weekend include:

K1 Klub House

K1 is definitely the best location this football junkie has been to in Nairobi.  They have finished setting up a tent especially for World Cup viewers with bleachers, three large projection screens, and another bar so you don't even have to leave the tent to get a beer.  We were there for the opening ceremony and S. Africa vs. Mexico match and it was definitely the place to be; we were packed in like sardines on the bleachers.  My only complaint would be that it was so noisy with excited fans that you couldn't hear the sportscaster's commentary.

However a second visit for Sunday afternoon's Serbia vs. Ghana game was much more relaxed.  There were fewer people seated inside the tent than earlier in the weekend, but we opted to sit inside the Klub House and watch in front of a smaller tv and order some bitings.

Location: Chiromo Ln. at Ojijo Rd. across from Parklands Sports Club
Price: 180 KSH domestic beer
Atmosphere: hotel, carwash, treehouse-esque bar with pool tables/tvs/dance floor

Kengeles

A Kenyan chain, Kengeles in Lavington is a fun, laidback, patio restaurant to take in a match or two.  Opening night of the Cup we got there just 30 minutes or so before kick off for the Uruguay vs. France game and were able to find a table and hang out comfortably while watching the game projected on a large screen on the large patio.  On Saturday we decided to get there before the second match and stake out a prime location for watching the USA vs. England game.  Getting there early definitely worked in our favor; we snagged two tables in front of the large screen on the main patio to cheer for the U.S.A.  The bonus for hanging out through both games was getting to stay for dinner.  The food was surprisingly good and everyone agreed the nachos (though the chips were minuscule broken bits) were excellent.

(Team America!)

Location: Lavington Green shopping center on James Gichuru Rd.
Price: 200 KSH domestic beer
Atmosphere: Fun covered patio pub

Galileo's

So none of our crew had been to Galileo's before, but we had some friends watch the opening match there the previous day, so we decided to check out the S. Korea vs. Greece game here.  They had several tvs all over the bar as well as a large projection screen over the front window. 

Location: Waiyaki Way past the museum hill roundabout (coming from City Centre) in Westlands
Price: 200 KSH domestic beer
Atmosphere: Fancy schmancy for a football match; it's more of a clubby lounge atmosphere with its trendy white leather sofa chairs and chandeliers. 

Black Diamond

I actually bailed on the final game of the weekend, but my friends watched Germany play Australia here on Sunday evening.  I understand they set up a projection screen outside on the patio for the late games, but it does not get set up for the two earlier matches.

Locations: Mpaka Rd. off of Muthithi Rd. in Westlands
Price: 200 KSH domestic beer with some decent imports including my favorite, Blue Moon
Atmosphere: In general, it's a fun balcony patio, bar, and dance club.