Corporate News
The Lord Erroll Restaurant in Nairobi’s Runda suburbs. The family of
former President Moi has deepened its investments in the hospitality
industry with the planned rebuilding of Lord Erroll Restaurant. FILE
PHOTO
By MUGAMBI MUTEGI
In Summary
- The former President’s family bought the restaurant in February 2013 from its three proprietors for just under Sh300 million, a purchase made through Koita International Kenya Limited.
- The restaurant, known for hosting exclusive events, is frequented by Kenya’s elite.
- The planned boutique hotel will add to the growing list of hotels being put up in the affluent neighbourhood targeting business tourists and diplomats.
The family of former President Moi plans to deepen
its hospitality industry investments by rebuilding Lord Erroll
Restaurant in Nairobi’s Runda suburb to include a multi-million-shilling
four-star hotel.
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Because of its location near the United Nations Office at
Nairobi headquarters in Gigiri, the new restaurant would conveniently
tap into UN-credentialled guests and diplomats as the rush to cash in on
the country's bed deficit grows.
Industry statistics show that the country requires
an additional bed capacity of between 10,000 and 15,000 to satisfy the
demand.
Large international hotel chains have recently
moved into the country to invest in both accommodation and conferencing
facilities. Among these entrants are American chains Radisson Hotels,
Best Western, and Kempinski. Others are Dubai’s Emaar Group, Thai-listed
Dusit International and Accor, a global hotel chain.
Lord Erroll, an exclusive restaurant named after a
British aristocrat executed in 1941, is to be demolished early next year
and in its place a 43-room hotel, and a replica of the current
restaurant, built under the same name.
The former President’s family bought the restaurant
in February 2013 from its three proprietors for just under Sh300
million, a purchase made through Koita International Kenya Limited
following approval by the Competition Authority of Kenya.
Koita International, the investment vehicle, also
owns and manages Lake Baringo Spa and Resort, a scenic 100-room getaway
on the Nairobi-Nakuru-Baringo highway and which was in 2012 elevated to a
world heritage site by Unesco.
The modification of the Lord Erroll restaurant will
mark the first major works on the 17-year-old pristine property named
after Josslyn Victor Hay, the 22nd Earl of Erroll, who was murdered on
Nairobi's Ngong Road 73 years ago — and focus of various “Happy Valley”
books and films.
“The plan is to build a four-star, two-floored
boutique hotel which will have a maximum of 43 rooms, a restaurant on
the ground floor and other facilities like a gymnasium, which we are
currently lacking,” said a source familiar with the proposed
development.
“We wanted to close off the business early next
year and begin the construction but this is subject to consultations and
agreements with officials of the Runda Residents Association. We have a
meeting with them in two weeks.”
The Lord Erroll restaurant was built in May 1997 by Hans Stoecklin, Michael Craig and Felix Huwler, whose nationalities Business Daily did not manage to ascertain by the time of going to press.
In March last year, the property exchanged hands after Koita International Kenya bought it from the three proprietors.
The restaurant, known for hosting exclusive events,
is frequented by Kenya’s elite. It was here that Lands secretary
Charity Ngilu held her graduation party in 2012 in an event attended by
President Uhuru Kenyatta.
In the last few years, Lord Erroll’s well-manicured
and picturesque lawns made it ideal for corporate functions and garden
weddings.
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