Lambic Restaurant & Beer Shop, Mauritius

Lambic beer collection MauritiusMost people, when they travel, have a’ must-see’ list. It might feature an ancient temple, a world-class national park or an oft-photographed natural site. When we arrived in Mauritius, we of course had the Black River Gorges National Park on our list, plus the well-known Flic-en-Flac Beach. But right up there with them was the Lambic Bar in Port Louis, opened in 2009 by Flying Dodo businessman Oscar Olsen.

There used to be over 130 imported beers on Lambic’s menu and while these days the number of beers rests more in the 50s, the menu still basically reads like a South African beer aficionado’s wet dream.

The bar itself is pretty unassuming – a whitewashed colonial house in a lesser-visited corner of the island’s capital, with a subtle  sign alerting you to the fact you’ve arrived at the country’s beer HQ. Once inside the walls, it’s a super-chilled vibe, with tables in a shady courtyard and more inside the dimly-lit but atmospheric bar. But you’re not here to read about atmosphere, decor or architecture – you want to know about the beer.

Well, in a nutshell, it’s pretty awesome. Lambic could give pretty much any South African beer bar a run for its money. The menu changes, but here’s a taster of what you can expect – get ready to start booking flights:

Lambic beer menuLambic beer menu 2

This is the kind of place that you could spend a fortune, so tackle the menu wisely. Before ordering anything, we perused and discussed the menu for 10 minutes, making our beer bucket list in order of importance. I can’t tell you a great deal about the service (though they were friendly) and I can’t tell you anything about the food (I’m not sure we even looked at that part of the menu). What I can tell you is that the beer selection is awesome, the prices are actually pretty reasonable considering the beers are imported in fairly small quantities and that you’re going to need to plan ahead and save some space in your suitcase. The shop is kid-in-a-candystore stuff for a beer lover and here’s a little tip we discovered by accident – the beers are cheaper if you take them away. Picture sipping a cool Sierra Nevada Pale Ale with a view of white sand, turquoise ocean and swaying palm trees. Probably the best reason yet to rent a self-catering apartment on Mauritius.

 

1 Comment

  1. Murray Mackay

    How can I get our craft beers on your served?

    Reply

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