Reading all the reviews of The Rock restaurant on here, my wife and I were excited to visit and sample some fresh seafood, good drinks and beautiful views.
We booked a lunchtime slot to make the journey there and back a viewable one (Travelling to the restaurant from the east coast of Zanzibar is close to an hour’s journey by taxi), of the local villages along the way.
The tide was out when we arrived, leaving an easy 50-80m walk along the man made path to the wooden steps of the restaurant.
When entering, you’re welcomed with a friendly greeting from all the staff and shown to your table. For us, this was the pinnacle of The Rock.
The food; we ordered the lobster tagliatelle and the squid on skewers, was bang average at best. The tagliatelle had a decent texture and consistency, but rather bland in taste. The squid came with potatoes and a little pot of mango salsa. The whole meal’s presentation looked as though a lazy college student had just plonked each beige item on to the plate before sitting in front of a tv not to miss the kick off of a big football game. The lack of flavour didn’t redeem its unappealing aesthetic either, just meh.
Desserts ordered, coconut tiramisu and passion fruit cheesecake. The tiramisu comes in a coconut shell and is pretty much 3/4 full of whipped cream with a sliver of coffee sponge cake amongst it. Similarly, the passion fruit cheesecake’s ratio is equally bad. On top you have a 2mm thin layer (just as well) of extremely sharp passion fruit, followed by a 3” deep layer of cottage cheese and 1mm layer of biscuit at its base, all in a 4” tall glass! Again, they seem half heartedly prepared and made.
All in all, The Rock restaurant for us is a novelty to visit and nowhere near worth the journey time and cost to visit. When going out for a meal we specifically want to eat great food first, combined with good service and atmosphere to create a great experience. Sadly, the food let this experience down and had preferred eating at our hotel.
