EMERSON SPICE

Repas le soir avec menu unique à 40 usd.
Menu à base de poisson et de fruits de mer.
Repas gastronomique excellent!

Great food 5 course diner was awesome. Views incredible as well with the roof top.

Had a five-course tasting menu on the rooftop. You usually have to book in advance, but on week days there are usually spaces. Starts at 6pm for drinks, food served at 7pm. I would absolutely recommend this place as a great first-evening meal, dining with a rooftop skyline, and good, interesting, playful plates. They have a sister restaurant nearby, and with a rooftop, so go to both!

Its great place for enjoying Zanzibar music while getting dinner

This place is so beautiful.

Upsides:
1) Location - right inside Stone Town, easy to access anywhere by foot
2) Service - lovely staff. The receptionist on the second day told me had overcharged my card and I didn’t even realize it.. appreciate the honesty
3) Beautiful rooms - reminds me of the riads of Marrakech. So beautiful!
4) Restaurants (spice garden and roof top dinner) were lovely! Although was still a bit hungry after the roof top course dinner.

Things to be aware of because it is important to manage expectations:
1) There is no access by car. Your taxi has to stop nearby and then it’s a 5 minute walk, but our driver rang the hotel beforehand so there was a porter that met us at the car stop to help with bags.
2) it’s a heritage hotel so some things are unavailable. There is no lift and the stairs are rather steep, not at all suitable for those with mobility issues.
3) there are 5 mosques in the vicinity and you will wake up 5am with more than one imam screeching in your ear even with ear plugs. On some days it even started at 4am (not a prayer but some mumbling). If you need your beauty sleep, this place may not be for you. We did not sleep well during all our nights there because of this but I guess it’s not the hotel’s fault. There is no sound proofing because it is a heritage building and you will also hear noises from normal life throughout the day.
4) the shower pressure was at times atrocious, marginally acceptable at best. sometimes there was no water at all temporarily (even with no power blackout). To me, this is a real disadvantage.
5) there was no safe in our room, so we had to keep valuables with the reception.