The Alchemist Bar closes as Nairobi County investigates

The Westlands bar was accused of alleged racism on Sunday.

The Alchemist Bar has closed its doors to allow for an investigation by the Nairobi County Government.

The Alchemist, a bar and restaurant in Westlands, came under fire on Sunday after a video went viral online showing guards allegedly turning away customers for being black.

In the video posted on Twitter by @murgormurgor the bar’s bouncers were seen sending away black Kenyans at the entrance asking them to join the queue reserved for Kenyans of African descent according to the person recording the video.

In response to the video which has since gone viral, the bar released a statement apologising for the incident but later released CCTV footage saying the accusations were “categorically untrue.”

However, in a recent statement, the bar has chosen to close to allow for an investigation into the incident.

“…the last few days have shown us that we have much work to do to hire a new security team and develop new systems and processes to ensure that every single person feels welcome. After careful consultation with Nairobi County Government, The Alchemist has agreed to close its doors while a thorough investigation is conducted over the next few days…” the statement read.

The Nairobi County Government investigation seeks to do the following:

1) Review the night of May 20th to determine if the guests in question were denied entry and if there was a policy in place to have separate lines for guests. Interviews with individuals in the video and review of footage throughout the entire evening.
2) Review The Alchemist, in general, to determine if there has ever been a policy of discrimination. Interviews and footage will be reviewed of the past events both at the gate and inside the establishment.
3) Review of the 3rd Party Security Services based on interviews and footage to determine what actions and recommendations should occur.

The fate of the once-popular Westlands bar will depend on the findings of the investigation.