July 7, 2006
The new Old Milk House
The Old Milk House is reborn ... again. This time it is 10 floors up at the top of the Kokeb building - one of those mouldering tower blocks that overlook the UN compound and Meskel Square.
Wim, its owner, has been amazingly resilient over the years. He recently placed newspaper adverts listing all the Milk Houses from the past - most of them victims of Addis Ababa's relentless construction boom. Each of them has had to shut down to make way for a new building, only to reappear somewhere else. The advert had the word 'bacca' (enough) printed in large letters at the bottom - suggesting that he might have given up.
But now it is back - and they are going to have a tough job knocking down this venue.
It is inconvenient, having to walk to the Kokeb building in the first place, then wait for the small lifts. It has now lost all resemblance to the back-yard bar that it was two incarnations ago. It is now somewhere that James Bond might have hung out in back in the 1970s mixed in with a bit of brutalist-concrete-chique.
But the food and service are the same - I celebrated the rebirth yesterday with Chicken Haka Noodle. And the new views (see pic with Meskel Square in the background) make the climb worthwhile.
Posted by aheavens at July 7, 2006 4:07 AM
Comments
I must be getting old, but could this restaurant be the old Kokeb restaurant that was popular about two decades ago?
Posted by: Mamitu at July 7, 2006 6:13 PM
...or maybe not so tough time. Up until at least the late 90s the basement (or ground) levels were used as an unmarked ammunition warehouse. There would always be a solitary military guard sitting outside idly in a chair for no apparent reason. Is he still around?
Posted by: yacob at July 8, 2006 7:54 PM
Is Wim still the owner of Milk House? I read the adverts that that he was trying to encourage former Milk House clients tired of looking at demolished sites to go to his place, Wim's Holland House in Bole (behind the grand Medhanealem church), where the "back yard" bar is back, including occasional live music, ambience/scenery, etc
Posted by: WriterT at July 12, 2006 3:23 PM
Can anyone tell me if the construction of Ayat's apartment buildings behined the ECA building has started yet?
I also hear that about 12,000 homes are about to come down to make room for the Sheraton expansion.
WHat about MIDROC-Huda's skyscraper project in the middle of piazza?
I would appriciate it if someone could give me the updates.
Posted by: Yirga at July 13, 2006 12:13 AM