For a while, brunch culture seemed to belong to Kampala. Every other weekend, social media is filled with pictures of people dressed for the occasion, gathering over food, cocktails and music. Gradually, that culture has travelled beyond the capital, with towns such as Jinja and Mbarara building social scenes of their own. Gulu is now firmly part of the conversation.
Over the weekend, Revelation Cottages hosted the first anniversary of Chill & Bites, an all-white affair in partnership with Johnnie Walker. The celebration brought together Gulu’s social crowd for an afternoon of RnB and Soul, built around a sing-along theme of nostalgia, friendship and shared memories.
For MC Kash Owakabi, the event’s organiser and host, the idea was to give Gulu a social gathering of its own. He recalls watching Kampala’s brunches and the experiences shared online while residents in Gulu had few similar occasions.
“People in Gulu would see those in Kampala organising brunches and posting their experiences on social media, but we didn’t have something similar here. We wanted to create a platform where people in Gulu could also come together, celebrate and enjoy themselves,” he says.
A year later, Chill & Bites has become a monthly gathering where people dress up, show off their style, reconnect and enjoy the city’s social scene.
The anniversary edition captured that spirit with its all-white dress code, which patrons embraced in large numbers. RnB and Soul provided the soundtrack, with MC Kash Owakabi hosting alongside DJs Big Val, Joelfresh, Amo B and Drey.
Johnnie Walker played a central role as the event’s experiential partner, bringing its Bottle Turnup concept to Gulu. Working with Gulu City Cocktails, the brand offered cocktail samples and specially themed serves, adding a curated cocktail experience to the afternoon.
The partnership paired Johnnie Walker’s premium positioning with Chill & Bites’ growing identity as a social platform, combining music, fashion and cocktail culture in an experience that went beyond the conventional party.
For Johnnie Walker, the collaboration also reflects an interest in engaging with evolving social cultures beyond Kampala. As daytime gatherings grow in popularity across the country, Gulu offers the brand a chance to connect with audiences embracing new ways of socialising.
It also ties into the brand’s Keep Walking philosophy, which celebrates progress and the milestones along the way. For Chill & Bites, the first anniversary marks a year of building a community and creating a space for Gulu’s social crowd. The celebration was a reminder that Gulu is developing its own social calendar, with experiences that give residents a reason to celebrate without looking to Kampala for inspiration.