Residents of the leafy suburb of Karen in Nairobi are now demanding the immediate closure of the new ‘The Summer House’ restaurant linked to media personality Betty Kyallo.

The residents accuse the restaurant of being “too noisy” coming as Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja has shut down up to eight nightclubs for noise pollution in residential areas.

The residents under the Karen Lang’ata District Association, in a statement addressed to the Nairobi City County Government, said they were discontent with the The Summer House.

In the statement dated November 25, 2022, association Chairman Silalteh Samora accused it of playing loud music at night and demanded it closure and withdrawal of its license.

Samora claims Kyallo’s entertainment joint ignored laid down procedures, including not conducting public participation and publishing a notice of change of user, ahead of its star-studded official launch on November 18.

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The official launch of The Summer House was attended by President William Ruto’s daughters Charlene and Stephanie with Nigerian top singer Patoranking being the headliner at the lavish ceremony.


“We are aggrieved that The Summer House, which opened its doors to the public two months ago, did not follow the prerequisite process when seeking to develop the property as is required by the law,” said Samora.

He added: “No public announcement in any daily newspaper was made notifying members of the public about The Summer House development.”

This comes a month after Lang’ata Forest Edge Residents Association (LAFERA) filed a petition through Kiarie, Joshua & Co Advocates accusing The Summer House of ignoring the Karen zoning policy and gave the Nairobi Environment and Solid Management Director seven days to close it.


“Please note that at the expiry of seven (7) days’ notice upon receipt of this letter without any action being taken against the said establishment, our client’s irrevocable instructions are to file the petition under a certificate of urgency before the Environment and Land Court seeking the appropriate orders compelling you to carry out your statutory functions,” read the letter dated October 19, 2022.

Sakaja on Friday led Nairobi county in cracking down on nightclubs being operated in residential areas over loud music and withdrew the licenses of a number of violators.

The county revoked the licenses of 1824, Pitstop Grill, Claret Lounge, Oyster Bay, CK Club, XS Millionaires, Edu’s Bar and Club 909 among other nightclubs in Nairobi for noise pollution.