The Box by Ashley.Maybe — Restaurant in Shangani

We are always up for trying a new restaurant and were glad to find yet another restaurant in this location.

Location and atmosphere:

this space is a jewel- located on the main strip in Stone Town, it's a 3 to 5 min walk to the seafront, Fordani Park and Stone Town beaches.

Perched atop the post office, it's a great place for people watching and/or sip a glass of wine and chill. It's also steps away from the Freddie Mercury Museum and many other Stone Town attractions.

The atmosphere was inviting, that has been constant in this location. The display of native plant species is a lovely addition to the balcony and the wine room remains a beautiful space.

Food:

The menu lured us and we were excited to try the brisket sandwich and chicken curry.

The presentation was stunning- photo worthy at every angle. However, the brisket was only visually appealing. The brisket was salt forward and I could not get past a few bites. I turned it into an open faced sandwich and added sauce, but nothing could diminish the salt.

Sadly, even the green salad was too salty- which didn't make sense. The only thing that wasn't salted were the potato wedges and they were slightly under cooked.

My partner had better luck with his curry. It wasn't his favorite Caribbean-style curry, but it was a nice change from the Indian and Swahili curries that he has on the island.

Overall we give this a 4. The brisket was too salty but beautifully presented and the curry average. The location is a winner!

We will go back for brunch and hope for a...

Last month, I took a group of women to spend an evening at The Box by Ashley for their amazing Salsa Night, and what an experience it was!

Let’s start with the food. You know how tricky it can be when dining as a group, especially when you’re trying to accommodate everyone’s dietary needs, particularly for those who are vegan and still want something exciting and flavourful. Well, The Box absolutely delivered. Every one of us from vegans to non-vegans loved our meals. The dishes were creative, delicious, and beautifully thought out. It wasn’t your usual cuisine; you could really feel the attention to detail and the heart behind every plate.

After dinner, we joined the Salsa Night ..full of fun, laughter, and that unmistakable Zanzibari rhythm. It was the perfect way to end the evening.

I actually loved the food so much that I went back the very next day for lunch, and it was just as good! I’ll definitely be back on my next trip to Zanzibar.

Highly recommended The Box by Ashley is a gem. And so is Ashley the...

I was just quietly having a drink when a lady came up to me and start harassing me. I politely tried to get her to leave, but it was difficult. Staff saw this happening, and I looked at them in despair, but they did nothing. I was the only customer at the time and I was sitting at the bar, so for sure they noticed. The lady seemed like she was probably on drugs. When she left, staff told me that she was ‘crazy’. I’m not sure why they didn’t think maybe they should have intervened. I tried asking them just that after the lady left but they were very dismissive. Very poor attitude.

Before all of this happened I already didn’t have a high opinion of the staff as they failed to answer even simple questions such as ‘which beer (out of three) do you recommend?’

The food menu was very limited. Basically just nachos and burrito bowls. I don’t think they serve most of the foods from the pictures on here anymore.

Reading the reviews here I can’t help but think that this place used to be decent and recently...