A slice of Peace at Sawa Sawa Bay in Bongo (Old Mbalamwezi)

Looking for a quiet spot on the beach in the evenings on Dar shores can be cumbersome, as much of the public beaches have a curfew! Yes you read right, thankfully one evening as I was looking to meditate in peace post 6pm on the Mikocheni beach area. I stumbled on an old establishment (Mbalamwezi) that’s now with a new name and whole new look. 

Going with the name Sawa Sawa Bay, it has friendly Maasai guards ensuring you can experience the beach post 6pm in safety with all your wits about you. Sawa Sawa Bay has within it an expansive restaurant with outside seating some on a manicured lawn, some on the sand and others on concrete under a few pergolas depending on your preference. The expansive bar is side by side a stage that accommodates live performances inclusive of DJ’s & or Live bands. The whole area faces the beach in a clean minimalist décor that takes maximum advantage of the wonderful view of the Indian Ocean.

While the new management has given us a new name, they have as well opened up the area not with corporate greed to cram all sorts of buildings on its beach front (that they keep clean). Instead stepping here you take a good gulp of fresh ocean air away from the bustling cram of the city. The seating is scattered fairly to allow for intimate gatherings and thankfully its bathrooms are clean, modern and maintained as such.

On the menu here is a continental cuisine favoring seafood dishes as well barbeques. One afternoon had me sampling their ‘Chicken Sawa Sawa with Wedges’ only I ordered it with Ugali. The meal arrived on time; a midsized steaming white mountain on a wide square plate with a good amount of colorful fresh veggies. On its side the chicken barbeque was dipped in sautéed gravy, it did go down well with that Ugali, allowing for easy swallows and tasty revisits. Another visit to this establishment had me tasting their starter ‘Crispy Chicken Nuggets’; these juicy chicken pieces fried in a light batter come with a dipping sauce of coleslaw and chili making for delish bites.

What pulls a second and third visit to Sawa Sawa is the service, the guards to the waiters and bartenders all send a sincere ‘karibu’. Another notch on their cap is the music, from Fridays to Sunday’s there’s usually a DJ and or Live Band. Having enjoyed a Friday night with a set of DJ’s here, it was to experience music. Not aimed at maiming your ears with deafening sounds, no this music seeped into your psyche. As the DJ’s were noting tempo and creativity allowing for stories in song that strangers could form bonds to on the dance floor. Where the ocean backdrop invites a most seductive release of being in the now; Sawa Sawa Bay is located opposite the Warioba bus stop in Mikocheni, Dar es Salaam. You can check them out on their facebook page Sawasawa Bay for details of their key events.

By Caroline Uliwa

n.b. this article was first published in The East African Newspaper in Sept 2022