Q Bar
- April 28, 2007
- Rated 4 of 5 by
MeadowsTravel from McLean, Virginia
Somehow, visions of a colonial past, like in Southeast Asia, oddly, come to mind as you enter Dar’s open-air Q Bar. Located near the “Karibu Hotel” on Dar es Salaam’s “Msasani Peninsula”, it’s a local hangout and, while I didn’t try many, must be the most colorful place in Dar. Part pool hall, part fast-food joint, part youth hostel, part brothel and part rally point after the Hash House Harrier’s official down-down, the Q Bar is really something. A limited menu of mostly freshly-grilled meats is available as well as the usual (malted barley) beverages. The BBQ pit is smack dab in the middle of the joint, so the smell pretty much guarantees you’re gonna buy some grilled meat. The service is good from a huge cadre of helpful and friendly waiters/waitresses. The restaurant’s back door leads to a separate building offering cheap rooms ($35-$55 per night) in what looks like a cross between a youth hostel and a no-tell motel. From the provocatively dressed, blinged-out young local ladies, their circulation like honeybees at a flower and plant show, and the number of hook-ups going on, the Q Bar also appears to offer better-than-even chances of finding young ladies with flexible morals, for the right price, of course. The two pool tables are half-size and on Mondays you can play for free. There’s karaoke on Wednesdays and a string of events on other nights. This place is so wacky cool you’ve gotta see it; no trip to Dar would be complete without spending at least one evening at the Q-Bar.
From journal Tanzanian Seaside Hideaway