For a landlocked country so far from Japan, Uganda is home to some surprisingly good sushi bars. The best of the bunch is undoubtedly Yujo, tucked away in leafy Nakasero Hill (a second branch is slated to open in a more central location later in 2014.) While most sushi bars are sleek and polished, Filipino-owned Yujo rocks a more laid-back feel: a long wooden bar is the focal point, while carved tables are dotted around the garden decking.

You’ll find great service here, zero pretentions and the friendly staff will happily make menu suggestions. You might need some; Yujo has one of the most extensive and creative Japanese menus that we’ve seen in a while. Dishes start at around USh19,000. On the day that we came by for lunch, the daily special was Norwegian blue mussel yaki soba noodles. A second option was steamed Tanzanian rock lobster with a togarashi (or capsicum) chilli reduction. You can also expect things like seared sea scallops, plump yaki soba noodles and of course, some fine sushi and sashimi.

To start, we tried the delicious gyoza; the serving of six fat steamed dumplings was far too much for one person (luckily Yujo doesn’t frown at giving out doggy bags.) Next up was a small sushi platter; we opted for spicy salmon rolls (USh27,500) and katana rolls, stuffed with spicy tuna, kani and cucumber and rolled in togarashi chilli. We didn’t have room for dessert, but we’re told that the chocolate sake cake is out of this world.

Speaking of sake, there’s a great choice on offer here, ranging from simple and cheap takacho josen sake to the very fancy hon jyozo hakkaisan sake, served either cool or hot. If you’re not a sake connoisseur, there’s also some nice white wine pairings, and the lemongrass mojitos go down a treat on a hot Kampala day.