Senior Staff enjoy a dinner at Carnivore to commemorate Mr. Kieni’s retirement after 37 years of service to Fairview.

Fairview Hotel's Mr. Kieni

I came for three months and stayed a little longer”, could be the understatement of the century. But it is typical of the modesty of Charles Szlapak to underplay his part in making the Fairview the hotel that it is today. Always a gentleman, underneath Charles’ unassuming and courteous nature is a stickler for detail who knows regular guests by name and personally answers every completed guest questionnaire.

The Szlapak family arrived in Kenya from Poland in 1938 and almost immediately Charles’ father set about establishing himself in business. The Parklands Private Hotel was Mr Szlapak’s first acquisition in 1940, followed in the next ten years by the Caledonian, the Kisumu, the Hurlingham, the Fairview, the Manor and Westfield hotels in Mombasa and finally in 1964, the Gaylord. Charles meanwhile, attended the Prince of Wales School in Nairobi, before embarking on a voyage to agriculture college in New Zealand.Always keen to farm, Charles set off for college in Palmerston North. Stopping off in South Africa to visit family, Charles discovered problems with his onward ticket, and rather than go back to Kenya he enrolled in agriculture at the University of Natal instead. Sadly, Charles’ father became ill so he returned to Nairobi to help with the business. By then the Mau Mau rebellion had broken out and Charles decided that farming was no longer a secure occupation for a European in Kenya. Thinking that law might be a suitable alternative Charles took up employment with a local law firm but after two years his father became ill again and Charles returned to the business. That was 1 March 1955. Since then he’s never looked back.

Charles learns his most important lesson in business Learning the business ‘on the job’ so to speak, stood Charles in good stead for the future. He learned from good managers, and sometimes bad ones, but probably his most important lesson was from a manager who consistently reported high gross income. Realising that despite this ‘high ‘ income the bank balance was not increasing, for the first time Charles understood the difference between turnover and income. “That was one of my big lessons”, he says, “that there is an enormous difference between what you bill and what you receive”. Needless to say, that manager didn’t last long after that.

Seeing the ‘writing on the wall’. Gradually, as Charles got to grips with the mechanics of the hotel business he made changes, including the abolition of the ‘chit’ system for guests. Credit, he decided, had to go. Many told him that the hotel wouldn’t survive this change, but as we all know, the Fairview’s still here and growing. Other changes included selling off all the other hotels, and when finally, Charles had sold the Manor Hotel in 1988, he used the profits to improve the Fairview. “I saw the writing on the wall”, says Charles “with the result that I put in boreholes, water storage, generators and all those things that would make the Fairview more self sufficient.”

Great support from the family. Throughout this time Charles was consolidating, not only the business, but the rest of his life and in 1966 he married Marian Elliot, granddaughter of Col Ewart Grogan, a famous character of settler history who walked from Cape to Cairo. Sadly Marian died in 1984 and Charles was left with three young children to bring up – another good reason to confine his life to Nairobi. The rest, as they say, is history. The children grew up and Charles’ daughter Eliana, a graduate of a Swiss hotel school, became both Director and Executive Housekeeper. Her husband Mark is also a ‘hands on’ Director and both give Charles strong support in managing the hotel. En suite bathrooms, TVs and telephones were added, conference facilities were built and a heated outdoor swimming pool was installed. Yet, despite the growth, the Fairview, is in some ways still a small hotel, still family owned and managed and Charles is still personally answering the questionnaires. And of course, it is this personal service and attention to detail that makes the Fairview what it is. From three months to 47 years certainly is ‘a little longer’. We look forward to making it longer still.

After six months of construction we are proud to announce the opening of the new hotel swimming pool. Situated behind the business centre the pool is currently for residents only and is open from 7.00 am to 6.30pm every day. Maintained at a constant temperature of 28 degrees the new swimming pool is cleverly designed to resemble the famous Fairview window (also our logo) – the top semi-circular portion being for kiddies only. The pool is surrounded by beautiful landscaped gardens and has its very own restaurant, where guests can enjoy breakfast and lunch or perhaps a pre-dinner drink. The first person to make a splash in our new swimming pool was long standing client Lynnette Walters of Compassion International. Being a big supporter of the Fairview, Lynnette was delighted to be our first swimmer. Thanks Lynnette for the ‘grand opening’.

There’s no doubt about it – those who commit themselves to high standards will be satisfied with nothing less than the best. That’s why Nairobi’s famous ‘Carnivore Restaurant’, together with its sister restaurant, the upmarket ‘Tamarind’ has decided to come to the Fairview for laundry services. Opened less than one year ago, the Fairview in-house laundry uses the most modern technology, guaranteeing an efficient and rapid service. Our guests too, appreciate the high standard of laundry service, not to mention the ‘express’ same day service that is provided (except Sundays and statutory holidays). Dry cleaning is also on offer.

Joseph Limisi is a man who knows his food. Trained as a cook since 1970, Limisi has been working in the Fairview kitchens since 1990 when he was taken on as a Sous Chef. He was made Head Chef in 1999 and has the Fairview’s three restaurants (including the newly opened Pool Restaurant at the swimming pool) plus the oasis Sandwich Bar under his control. Despite living in Kenya all his life, Limisi is pretty hot when it comes to middle eastern cuisine. He received his very first cookery training at the Turkish Embassy in Nairobi in 1970 where he learned the art of marinading. ‘Shish kebabs’, he says, are not the same unless they are first marinaded in a mixture of oil, lemon juice, garlic, ginger, mixed spices and ground pepper” – plus a little something extra known only to Limisi. “Everything must have a pinch of something of your own,” asserts Limisi, “in order to give it that little extra flavour.”Limisi left the embassy after five years in order to open his own bakery in Kakamega (”I know how to make bread”, he says confidently). In 1980 Limisi joined the Red Bull Restaurant chain where, for eight years, he prepared a selection of middle eastern dishes such as humous, tahini and tabouleh. It was also here that he learnt to make sauces, something he enjoys very much. Since joining the staff at the Fairview Limisi’s cooking has gone from strength to strength, though he still regards the art of marinading, either meat or fish, as one of the most important elements of the cooking process. Asked for his favourite dish, he says it is lasagne, not just because he enjoys the flavour but also because it’s a dish which he himself makes from start to finish, including the pasta. But if lasagne’s not your favourite, Limisi recommends the Scotch Broth, “because if you cook it properly it is really delicious, either as a whole meal or an appetiser”. We asked Joseph to give us the recipe for one of the Fairview’s most popular dishes, ‘Country Hotel Grilled Chicken”. Why not give it a try at home?

• Country Hotel Grilled Chicken
• Preparation time: 25 minutes.
• Cooking Time: 30 minutes.
• Serves 4.
• 2 small chickens about (750 gms each) or 1 kg of chicken drumsticks
• 2 tablespoons malt vinegar or lemon juice
• 1.5 teaspoons of ground chilli
• 1.5 teaspoons of ground sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons of ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala
• 1 tablespoon of finely grated ginger
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• One third cup of plain yoghurt
• 2 tablespoons of melted margarine and corn oil.

Wash chickens under cold water and pat dry with absorbent paper. Combine vinegar, chilli, paprika, coriander, cumin, garam masala. Ginger. Garlic, salt and yoghurt in a large glass or ceramic bowl. Using scissors, remove backbone from chickens. Turn chickens over and flatten. Make several slashes in the skin and place chickens on a tray. Coat well with the marinade, working it into the flesh. Cover and marinate for four hours in the fridge. Place the chickens on a cold lightly oiled grill. Brush with the melted oils and cook under a moderately hot grill for about 25 minutes. Turn halfway through cooking. Brush occasionally with any remaining marinade. Serve with naan bread or chapatis, lemon wedges and tomato and onion salad.