'Chips and Soda' is perhaps the most common combo any of us ordered whenever we were taken out for lunch. Even to date, - I don't know about soda since the entry of yoghurt and smoothies into the mix, but chips, remain top of a majority's menu on a day out.

For all the enjoyment, satisfaction and memories shared over a plate or 'packet' of chips, I guess Kenya has one man to thank for it all - Aggrey Otieno Ambala - a beneficiary of the famous Tom Mboya academic airlift programme.

Courtesy of the initiative, Ambala attended Havard University in the United States of America (USA) and graduated with a degree in Economics. When he returned, Ambala brought an idea that would forever revolutionise dining experiences for many Kenyans.

In his bag, the business-savvy Ambala carried a machine that could chop potatoes into small pieces, chips. He opened a small café near the old Ambassadeur Hotel in Nairobi.

At the time, most Kenyans had only had boiled or roasted potatoes. So they wondered how someone would eat tiny deep-fried potato pieces. They began to taste the chips with salt, tomatoes, or chilli source and were blown away.

Other items on the menu included fish fillet, chicken and sausage.

Ambala's business was opposite the Kenya Cinema and on weekends, it would get busier. The long queues forced the cinema to extend the opening hours.

He later sold the business to new owners who renamed it to Munyiri's Chips.

Ambala partnered with a long-time friend, Njenga Karume and bought shares at the Kenya Breweries Limited (KBL). They also co-founded a distributor, Narereshi Wholesalers. 

The savvy businessman expanded his investment portfolio to include shares in blue chip companies, several acres of land in Karen, and a hardware and two petrol stations; one in Kisumu called Ka' Ambala and another near Afya Centre in Nairobi.

Ambala later ventured into politics, clinching the Gem Constituency Member of Parliament seat in 1979 defeating Isaac Omolo Okero. He would then lose the 1983 elections to Horace Owiti Ongili.

He was arrested and jailed for suspicion of involvement in the gruesome murder of Ongili. He died at the Kodiaga Prison in Kisumu in 1985.

Like many other prominent families in the country, Ambala's polygamous family has been in a never-ending court battle for his estate worth billions.