We all know how price-sensitive the retail food market tends to be, with demand being very inelastic in the high end sphere, but very elastic in the low to mid-market range.
The antidote and nothing succeeds like success than discounting coupled with a creative menu that is bountiful, while offering a wide variety.
Given the fierce competition in the industry, one of the tactics of survival is to create an angle or what one may refer to as a niche market.
To which I hasten to add that the same pretty much applies to a wide birth of different types of cuisine to be found in and around town.
However, in the case of Asian food, Copper Chimney has tactfully zeroed into the Sunday Brunch, where nothing could be more apt than the saying: ‘show me your friends and I will tell you who you are.’ On any given Sunday, one would think that they were in little Delhi.
Not to mention the fact that Indians more than Africans, are big on family outings or sharing. As we discovered on a recent Sunday, a huge cluster of Indian families ensure that come hell or high water, they never miss out on this fabulously priced bargain at a giveaway price of Shs40,000, with children under 12, paying Shs25,000 all-inclusive of VAT. Noticeably, each person to a tee was eating with their right hand.
Of course Indians do not use cutlery because in the usual Indian way, they always eat with their fingers. It may appear like a rather messy habit, but once you get used to the idea, one is apt to feel much as connoisseurs of Japanese and Chinese food feel about chopsticks.
The food, for no discernable reason, simply tastes better. It reminds me of a story that the Shah of Iran, while on a visit to India, was so taken by the custom that he remarked that to eat with a knife and fork was akin to making love through an interpreter. Eating with your fingers is in no way a difficult technique to mater with a few essential rules along with a certain etiquette.
North Indians are apt to feel that Southerners are hopelessly lacking in refinement and delicacy in their manner of eating due to the fact that they plunge their whole hand into their food.
South Indians often feel that no decadence or absurdity is too extreme to be unexpected from those finicky chaps from North India who never allow their food to creep past the first knuckle.
Yet, nowhere in traditional India would you use your left hand while eating, even if you are left-handed, for the left hand is considered unclean.
One of the major challenges that buffet settings face is the array of dishes all too often, serving the food with a meagre hand. With regards to the former, the buffet offering at the Copper Chimney is more than generous and cannot be faulted.
One can expect different types of naan ranging from butter, garlic to cheese or just plain naan. Likewise, one can expect vegetable pilao rice or a decent biryani rice, not to mention chicken or goat curry.
As would be expected, the non-vegetarians ought to have no reason to complain whatsoever; after all it is fair to assume that they are in the majority.
The vegetarians were amply taken care of with entrees such as chole bhature, paneer methi chaman, veg kolapuri, aloo Gobi mutter, dal makhani, Kashmiri pilao etc.
As for the food rationing aspect, which is not only annoying but degrading and frequently the rule than the exception at Ugandan wedding receptions, hats off to Copper Chimney.
From the time they begin serving food at noon, until they stop three hours later, there is a constant stream of replenishment without any let up.
No doubt this act of unbridled generosity adds to the success of the place and is most appreciated by the diners, who throng there in droves each Sunday creating a SRO situation.
While the numbers can sometimes be daunting, nobody can complain that they have not had their money’s worth. In terms of quality, there are bound to be slight glitches now and again, but in the main the food is par for the course.
The service is generally good and hopefully our Ugandan brethren will be inspired by the price to take the family out for something different from the usual matooke, groundnut sauce and nyama.
Place: Copper Chimney, Authentic North Indian cuisine
Address: Hesketh Bell Road, Kampala
Smoke-Free Zone: Strictly disallowed
Recommended items: The Sunday buffet
Service: Could be better when they are busy
Ambience: Okay
Open: Daily 7 days a week though the buffet is only on Sunday
Menu Brunch: Chat Counter: Pani Puri, Dahi papdi chat, Aloo papadi chat, Aloo tikki chat. Veg starter: Veg shami kebab, Afghani paneer tikka. Non-veg starter: Tandoori chicken, fish Amritsar. South Indian: Idil, sambar, chutney, Hyderabadi Drum chicken, Biryani. Main Meal: Chole bhature, paneer methi chman, veg kolapuri, faldari koft, adraki aloo Gobi mutter, dal makhani, laal mass, Kashmiri pulao. Assorted Naan live, assorted non veg tawa live: Salad: Lettuce salad, aloo chana chat salad laccha onions, boondi raita. Dessert: Jalebi, rabadi
The Crowd: Mainly Asians with their families in tow
The Bar: Beer, soda and mineral water and other alcoholic beverages
The damage: Adults Shs40,000, children under 12 Shs25,000
Sound level: Good
Rating: Worth a visit
Parking: Available
If you go: The buffet is from 12:00 noon to 15:00 hours
RATINGS: Not to be missed, worth a visit, OK/so so, don’t waste your time.
