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Karibu is a world renowned East African restaurant that has served the Northeast for over 20 years. We pride ourselves in serving dishes from Southeast Africa that will not only leave you yearning for more but will teach more about our culture, lineage and value we offer to you.
Cafeteria-style operation doling out traditional African food, including stews, in a modest setting.
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Reviews
J. Michael German
This place was… strange. First I’ll say the food was excellent. We got the beef stew, chicken platter, spicy samosa, and fried donut. The beef stew was some of the best stew I have ever had. Everything else was top tier.
The strange part was the atmosphere and service. First, the location is set back from the street and looks like a hole in the wall. Once inside its a big room with tables and a small counter section with food partially visible partially not. See the images. No menu, no prices, no people.
Eventually we noticed a woman in the corner who got up, walked into the kitchen and got someone to help us. They showed us some of the food, gave no indication of what prices anything was nor what would be purchased together.
After some back and forth with us asking about things not mentioned we randomly got things. My wife got, a potato, some rice, some veggies, and chicken stew. That was a platter for $22. My beef stew was $9, and each of my two samosa and 2 fried donuts cost around $2 each.
I really want to rate this higher because of the food, but the atmosphere was so off for us I just can’t.
… moreThe strange part was the atmosphere and service. First, the location is set back from the street and looks like a hole in the wall. Once inside its a big room with tables and a small counter section with food partially visible partially not. See the images. No menu, no prices, no people.
Eventually we noticed a woman in the corner who got up, walked into the kitchen and got someone to help us. They showed us some of the food, gave no indication of what prices anything was nor what would be purchased together.
After some back and forth with us asking about things not mentioned we randomly got things. My wife got, a potato, some rice, some veggies, and chicken stew. That was a platter for $22. My beef stew was $9, and each of my two samosa and 2 fried donuts cost around $2 each.
I really want to rate this higher because of the food, but the atmosphere was so off for us I just can’t.
Somair Feroz
My first time trying Ugandan food. When I entered the restaurant, it felt as if I was entering someone’s home as a guest, who like to take care of you before anything else. I wanted to try stuff so had the beef stew, chapati, beans, spinach , tea , kabalaga (pancake) and the mandazi (donut). The chapati with beef stew and the kabalaga with tea were pairs made in heaven.
… moreCynthia Assanah
We drove over three hours from Brooklyn, New York to Waltham, Massachusetts to go to this restaurant. We’d heard they had very good Ugandan food. My husband and I had all foods with a chicken stew and my husband had the fish. The fish wasn’t that great, but everything else was ok. The food wasn’t worth the drive, but it’s one person’s opinion. We also bought some Mandazi. Those were really good.
… moreJoyce Quach
I love this place, but today I was finally disappointed. They can be dishonest with the pricing of their food. A friend and I got 6 spicy beef samosas, 2 plates of rice, 1 bowl of peanut sauce, 1 bowl of beans, 2 medium chais, (all delicious) and 2 water bottles because the waitress told us there wasn’t a lot of food left- but we were charged $24 per person with no itemized receipt. Meanwhile.. we see an African couple with a child next to us have plates clearly containing meat and cornmeal, and I’m sure they came in later than us. The first time I was here, $20-$24 meant a plate of cornmeal, meat (oxtail), and greens, and that lasted me another meal. A medium chai at that time was probably around $4-$6. No way that food costed $20. A different friend of mine had a similar experience with overcharging and underserving. Be wary of what you order here. They also seemed to not pick up their phone today before we came in- probably because they were low on stock for dinner tonight- but how would we have known that?
Really cute place with homey vibes, and I still do recommend it, but do be wary. You might have to pull a bit of a Karen at the beginning and ask for the pricing of each item so you know what you’re paying for when you’re done.
… moreReally cute place with homey vibes, and I still do recommend it, but do be wary. You might have to pull a bit of a Karen at the beginning and ask for the pricing of each item so you know what you’re paying for when you’re done.
Vincent Valenzuela
I’ve never felt so taken care of – instead of a menu, we were told what was available and what was good today. Staff is soooo friendly and helpful. We had Ugandan beef and veggies samosas chicken in coconut milk sauce, rice and beef, mixed veg . . . So so so good!
… moreNabeel Khan
I had a mixer plate with an option of boiled rice, beans, mixed vegetables and a side of Irish. The total cost was $15, which can be pricey on a student budget. Also once you pay in the vicinity of $15 you start looking at items such as ambiance etc which the place could definitely do better.
My experience was slightly different from my previous time, when i did take away. While the beans and vegetables were nice, it was slightly less flavorful from my previous time. The Irish was nice and tender potato which is how i like it. I also had a sugar rush before so perhaps that could be the reason.
… moreMy experience was slightly different from my previous time, when i did take away. While the beans and vegetables were nice, it was slightly less flavorful from my previous time. The Irish was nice and tender potato which is how i like it. I also had a sugar rush before so perhaps that could be the reason.
Mike Mitchell
I went in with my girlfriend a little more than an hour before close. We did not understand how to order, when an old soft spoken lady came up to us. I thought she was a customer, but she was a server. She explained they were out of most foods because it’s later, but they still had beef and rice. We told her it was fine and she told us to make ourselves comfortable.
There were some loud men, tough looking men at different tables speaking different languages. It was a bit off putting at first, but after we were there a few minutes we started to get smiles and greetings. It seemed they were just taken aback by us because we were different than everyone else. Everyone I interacted with was very friendly, and it felt safe.
It felt like I was being served by the sweet mother of a good friend. We were brought bowls of beef soup and large plates of rice. As we ate, she continued to bring out food. More beef broth, more beef, a vegetable salad. She would bring out the food, tell us what it was and make sure she got some approval before setting it down.
We got up to smoke at one point. She rushed over to cover our food with plates. I was very impressed by the attention to food safety they had, especially for a small resturant.
The food was delicious. The beef still had bone on it and had a pot roast texture to it. The rice had a chinese food fried rice taste to it, but all of the food had a blend of spices I had never tried before. It was not very spicy, but it was good enough it did not need to be.
I was wondering if I was going to get stuck with a big bill and the end as I had not inquired about the prices. The bill was just over $40 with two bottles waters. My girlfriend and I are big eaters, but we both ate as much as we could, had left over later that night and then for lunch the next day. The price for the portions was definitely good.
I haven’t written many reviews, but this place deserved 5 starts.
… moreThere were some loud men, tough looking men at different tables speaking different languages. It was a bit off putting at first, but after we were there a few minutes we started to get smiles and greetings. It seemed they were just taken aback by us because we were different than everyone else. Everyone I interacted with was very friendly, and it felt safe.
It felt like I was being served by the sweet mother of a good friend. We were brought bowls of beef soup and large plates of rice. As we ate, she continued to bring out food. More beef broth, more beef, a vegetable salad. She would bring out the food, tell us what it was and make sure she got some approval before setting it down.
We got up to smoke at one point. She rushed over to cover our food with plates. I was very impressed by the attention to food safety they had, especially for a small resturant.
The food was delicious. The beef still had bone on it and had a pot roast texture to it. The rice had a chinese food fried rice taste to it, but all of the food had a blend of spices I had never tried before. It was not very spicy, but it was good enough it did not need to be.
I was wondering if I was going to get stuck with a big bill and the end as I had not inquired about the prices. The bill was just over $40 with two bottles waters. My girlfriend and I are big eaters, but we both ate as much as we could, had left over later that night and then for lunch the next day. The price for the portions was definitely good.
I haven’t written many reviews, but this place deserved 5 starts.
Vasudha Sarawgi
Absolutely loved the service and good. They have a small menu, each item is cooked fresh daily. We had the beef, chicken, and vegetarian samosa. Highly recommend getting multiple for yourself, they are flaky and delicious. For mains we got fish stew, beef stew, chapatis, beef rice and vegetable sides. We got a spicy hot sauce to put on everything and it was amazing I plan to buy a bottle the next time. We finished the meal off tea!
Hole in the wall place run by family, with delicious food. Please give it a try you are missing out.
… moreHole in the wall place run by family, with delicious food. Please give it a try you are missing out.
Zoe PatMo
Avoid !!! Was going to try East African food . Nothing looked palatable. Nothing what the other reviewers had was available ! This was at lunch time . Beef stew was swimming in oil
Be aware they charge different prices for different people .
I bought Mandazi , Somosas and Bhajias .
Mandazi was stale and sour , samosas had a weird taste . As it was a takeout I called next day to complain also found out I was over charged.
… moreBe aware they charge different prices for different people .
I bought Mandazi , Somosas and Bhajias .
Mandazi was stale and sour , samosas had a weird taste . As it was a takeout I called next day to complain also found out I was over charged.
Drew Edwards
Put simply, incredible Ugandan food that will make you feel like you are right in Kampala. True Ugandan hospitality included. Matooke? Check. Chapati? Check. Beef stew? Check. You can even order the coveted luwombo dish – forewarning, you have to order a day ahead of time. There are also flares of cooking that hints at fusion dishes, like a chicken coconut curry that would be rare to find in Uganda, but you’ll be happy to get in Waltham.
Their hot bar is a great lunch option. You can even pick up samosas and ‘african (ginger) tea’!
Never had Ugandan food? No worries, the staff is wonderful and will explain all of it to you. You might even learn some Luganda along the way.
What Karibu does not have: northern Ugandan dishes. You will be hard pressed to find Malakwang, millet, or any other staples of the north.
… moreTheir hot bar is a great lunch option. You can even pick up samosas and ‘african (ginger) tea’!
Never had Ugandan food? No worries, the staff is wonderful and will explain all of it to you. You might even learn some Luganda along the way.
What Karibu does not have: northern Ugandan dishes. You will be hard pressed to find Malakwang, millet, or any other staples of the north.