Yeah.
It's been way too long. I've left you cold and without mental sustenence for a few months now. Not that I haven;t been sampling the fare cairo has to offer - I just haven't written it up yet.
Look forward to reviews/rants on:
Romano's Macaroni Grill
Justine's
Ruby Tuesday
Johnny Rocket
Crocodile Grill
The Best Hamburger in Cairo
The Best Koshary in Cairo
All this and more - if you're lucky before the end of this year!
Till then, stay sweet, stay safe and keep on dancing!
Cooking Time.....2 Minutes
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Eatalian, Phase 2 City Stars.
Let me get this out of the way first: Eatalian is not cheap. According to my math you’ll end up spending an extra 10% premium for an experience which, at first glance, is comparable to eating cold hors d'eurves at a freezing and ghastly green storage facility.
That having been said, once you actually get past the unsightly green décor, uncomfortable tables and chairs and unfortunate location in the middle of City Stars’ “family food court” in phase 2, you come to the realization that Eatalian, in fact, is good.
Quite Good. Memorable, even…
I’ve had their wild mushroom risotto, which is a classic recipe. Comparing this risotto to the only other wild mushroom risotto I’ve ate in Cairo – that of Le Gourmandise at the First Mall – I can proclaim Eatalian as the winner by knockout in the first round. This Risotto is creamy, al dente and literally explodes with flavor, especially if you’re fortunate enough to get a piece of fresh mushroom cap on your spoonful. I say fortunate, because I was in the company of two skeptics; and we all decided to share off the menu in the communal spirit of the Italians. The mushroom caps were so good that my good friends turned into growling rottweilers, baring their pearly whites, whenever I pointed my spoon in the general direction of those wonderful caps.
We moved on to the Bresaola antipasti, Milanese Caprese Salad and a Grilled Tenderloin Crostini. I will not wax on poetic about how good they were, but apparently my moans of ecstasy bothered the veiled and bearded couple sitting to my rear, and they promptly got up and left before waiting for their menus. Perhaps it was for the best; one bite of the Bresaola would have turned the Mr. Beard into a wild love-making machine, while the Mrs. Veil would have kicked up her burkha and performed a striptease on the wooden tables.
Served on wooden chopping boards, I felt that this was real Man’s Food; consumed to provide fuel for the torrid love that Italians are purported to make. There was nothing complicated about the presentation – it was simple, beautiful and made me want to lick it all over.
Eatalian and its far-eastern cousin Wagamama are both owned and managed by the same company that operates Casper and Gambini. The good news is that this means the tradition of fresh ingredients and perfect cooking techniques are handed down to the younger franchises. The bad news is that Eatalian’s weakness seems to have also been inherited from its bigger brothers – the Desserts.
Italian Soda, Ricotta Cheesecake – two opportunities for greatness, two immense failures. The manager of Eatalian, a tall, svelte Lebanese gentleman named Paul (whose named when Egyptified sounds woefully like the Arabic word for urine) endeavored to explain to me that the cheesecake was not bad – my sense of taste was wrong. Intrigued by this technique, I indulged him as he proclaimed to have been trained in Michelin starred restaurants in Paris, and holds a degree in food history (or at least took a course in it). Now if he were, in fact, trained at Michelin starred restaurants, he should know that the customer’s comfort is of the utmost importance. When faced with the irrefutable fact that a raspberry coulis should be sans seeds, he declared that Italians are rustic, and as a rustic Italian restaurant, Eatalian does not strain the seeds out of its raspberry sauce. The sauce tasted fantastic, but the seeds really got in the way.
I think I may have missed something: Since when did Feng Shue-ing a pizza become “rustic”? There is nothing rustic about Eatalian, and the sooner the management realizes this, the better. They will lose the incongruous décor; which looks like it was stolen from a color blind carpenter’s loft in Manhattan. Green makes me want to grab a shovel and start planting shit – not grab a fork and begin eating.
It is worthy to note that this is the world’s first branch of Eatalian; with more coming in Dubai, Beirut and Saudi Arabia. It occupies the same niche as Casper and Gambini, Waterlemon (not yet in Egypt, thank god) and now, Ruby Tuesday’s – all vying for the Yappie crowd (Young Arab Professionals).
Does it stand a chance? Perhaps.
Does it stand apart? Not for long.
Cooking time: 25 Minutes
That having been said, once you actually get past the unsightly green décor, uncomfortable tables and chairs and unfortunate location in the middle of City Stars’ “family food court” in phase 2, you come to the realization that Eatalian, in fact, is good.
Quite Good. Memorable, even…
I’ve had their wild mushroom risotto, which is a classic recipe. Comparing this risotto to the only other wild mushroom risotto I’ve ate in Cairo – that of Le Gourmandise at the First Mall – I can proclaim Eatalian as the winner by knockout in the first round. This Risotto is creamy, al dente and literally explodes with flavor, especially if you’re fortunate enough to get a piece of fresh mushroom cap on your spoonful. I say fortunate, because I was in the company of two skeptics; and we all decided to share off the menu in the communal spirit of the Italians. The mushroom caps were so good that my good friends turned into growling rottweilers, baring their pearly whites, whenever I pointed my spoon in the general direction of those wonderful caps.
We moved on to the Bresaola antipasti, Milanese Caprese Salad and a Grilled Tenderloin Crostini. I will not wax on poetic about how good they were, but apparently my moans of ecstasy bothered the veiled and bearded couple sitting to my rear, and they promptly got up and left before waiting for their menus. Perhaps it was for the best; one bite of the Bresaola would have turned the Mr. Beard into a wild love-making machine, while the Mrs. Veil would have kicked up her burkha and performed a striptease on the wooden tables.
Served on wooden chopping boards, I felt that this was real Man’s Food; consumed to provide fuel for the torrid love that Italians are purported to make. There was nothing complicated about the presentation – it was simple, beautiful and made me want to lick it all over.
Eatalian and its far-eastern cousin Wagamama are both owned and managed by the same company that operates Casper and Gambini. The good news is that this means the tradition of fresh ingredients and perfect cooking techniques are handed down to the younger franchises. The bad news is that Eatalian’s weakness seems to have also been inherited from its bigger brothers – the Desserts.
Italian Soda, Ricotta Cheesecake – two opportunities for greatness, two immense failures. The manager of Eatalian, a tall, svelte Lebanese gentleman named Paul (whose named when Egyptified sounds woefully like the Arabic word for urine) endeavored to explain to me that the cheesecake was not bad – my sense of taste was wrong. Intrigued by this technique, I indulged him as he proclaimed to have been trained in Michelin starred restaurants in Paris, and holds a degree in food history (or at least took a course in it). Now if he were, in fact, trained at Michelin starred restaurants, he should know that the customer’s comfort is of the utmost importance. When faced with the irrefutable fact that a raspberry coulis should be sans seeds, he declared that Italians are rustic, and as a rustic Italian restaurant, Eatalian does not strain the seeds out of its raspberry sauce. The sauce tasted fantastic, but the seeds really got in the way.
I think I may have missed something: Since when did Feng Shue-ing a pizza become “rustic”? There is nothing rustic about Eatalian, and the sooner the management realizes this, the better. They will lose the incongruous décor; which looks like it was stolen from a color blind carpenter’s loft in Manhattan. Green makes me want to grab a shovel and start planting shit – not grab a fork and begin eating.
It is worthy to note that this is the world’s first branch of Eatalian; with more coming in Dubai, Beirut and Saudi Arabia. It occupies the same niche as Casper and Gambini, Waterlemon (not yet in Egypt, thank god) and now, Ruby Tuesday’s – all vying for the Yappie crowd (Young Arab Professionals).
Does it stand a chance? Perhaps.
Does it stand apart? Not for long.
Cooking time: 25 Minutes
Sunday, June 22, 2008
The Koshary Quandary, Revisited
I mentioned very early on that finding the greatest plate of koshary out there was one of my purposes in writing this blog. To chronicle the Hunt. To search High and Low for that perfect plate of pure Egyptian goodness. And after I’ve found it, devise a way to bring it into the 21st century.
To understand Koshary is to understand the Egyptian psyche. We need a feast for the eyes, and also a feast for the stomach. This is evident when we sit down at a family dinner: the table is covered end to end in different varieties of food - mountains of rice, Penne and béchamel casserole, Molokheyya soup, plates of chicken and beef and okra stew in a bright red tomato sauce - all vying for valuable real estate in our stomachs, hearts and memories.
Koshary is like a huge dinner table, except its all in one plate. We’ve got the pasta. We’ve got the Rice. We’ve got the bright red tomato sauce. Koshary is a poor man’s dish, so there is no meat or vegetables, but to make things interesting, we’ve added lentils and chickpeas, and topped it with inexpensive fried onions, and drizzled a garlic vinaigrette on top for that extra “kick”
Meanwhile, the French are using soy sauce (!), Italians are making bolognaise ragù with Kobe beef and the Americans sit somewhere between continental and oriental cuisine; the culinary equivalent of an identity crises. One thing all American food has in common, however is that it’s all invariable fatty. Kind of like the American people. You are what you eat after all.
But I digress.
I decided to begin the hunt at Abu El Seed, ostensibly a monument to Egyptian cuisine. Since I had never been there, I spent these past few months asking around, and the feedback I received was generally positive, notable for the fact that while everyone recommended the Sherkasseyya (Chicken with walnut sauce) no one had actually ordered the Koshary. “Why not?” I asked. Responses ranged from “I don’t like koshary” to “why would I pay so much for such a cheap dish?”
I thought to myself: if Abu El Seed was making koshary using the exact same ingredients as Sheikh El Balad or Koshary el Tahrir, then we’ve got problems.
At long last, after enjoying sushi, raving about C+G’s and a thinly veiled rant about the sexuality of beef, I have finally gotten around to telling you, my nonexistent reader, what the Koshary in Abu El Seed is all about.
In a word? Disappointment. Much like Lucille’s “world’s greatest hamburger” moniker, I was promised so much by the hype surrounding the restaurant itself and let down.
It didn’t taste nearly half as good as the cheaper alternatives at KT’s or Abu Tarek. The plate had very little rice, very little lentils and was little more than a bowl of slimy spaghetti strands swimming in a sea of garlicky water. There were so many transgressions committed against this venerable dish:
- The use of spaghetti pasta – cooked al dente, no less! (Koshary is the exception to the Al Dente rule).
- Incorrect proportions of fried onions, lentils, chickpeas, rice and pasta.
- drowning the plate in Garlic water: I’m sure we all agree that the application of the hot red pepper sauce, garlic vinaigrette, and tomato sauce should *always* be left upto the consumer.
In the end, I realized I need to be more selective of whom I ask for restaurant recommendations. Unfailingly, the first thing mentioned is the dessert they “loved”, the fact they were starving when they got there and that the decor is “really cool”. Well, it turns out the dessert they loved was a 2 day old apple tart bought in from the Marriot Bakery and the decor is a cross between a suburban coffee outlet and a sheesha joint, complete with Bamboo chairs.
For Koshary, Abu Seed fails miserablty. And the search continues..
Cooking Time: 45 Minutes.
To understand Koshary is to understand the Egyptian psyche. We need a feast for the eyes, and also a feast for the stomach. This is evident when we sit down at a family dinner: the table is covered end to end in different varieties of food - mountains of rice, Penne and béchamel casserole, Molokheyya soup, plates of chicken and beef and okra stew in a bright red tomato sauce - all vying for valuable real estate in our stomachs, hearts and memories.
Koshary is like a huge dinner table, except its all in one plate. We’ve got the pasta. We’ve got the Rice. We’ve got the bright red tomato sauce. Koshary is a poor man’s dish, so there is no meat or vegetables, but to make things interesting, we’ve added lentils and chickpeas, and topped it with inexpensive fried onions, and drizzled a garlic vinaigrette on top for that extra “kick”
Meanwhile, the French are using soy sauce (!), Italians are making bolognaise ragù with Kobe beef and the Americans sit somewhere between continental and oriental cuisine; the culinary equivalent of an identity crises. One thing all American food has in common, however is that it’s all invariable fatty. Kind of like the American people. You are what you eat after all.
But I digress.
I decided to begin the hunt at Abu El Seed, ostensibly a monument to Egyptian cuisine. Since I had never been there, I spent these past few months asking around, and the feedback I received was generally positive, notable for the fact that while everyone recommended the Sherkasseyya (Chicken with walnut sauce) no one had actually ordered the Koshary. “Why not?” I asked. Responses ranged from “I don’t like koshary” to “why would I pay so much for such a cheap dish?”
I thought to myself: if Abu El Seed was making koshary using the exact same ingredients as Sheikh El Balad or Koshary el Tahrir, then we’ve got problems.
At long last, after enjoying sushi, raving about C+G’s and a thinly veiled rant about the sexuality of beef, I have finally gotten around to telling you, my nonexistent reader, what the Koshary in Abu El Seed is all about.
In a word? Disappointment. Much like Lucille’s “world’s greatest hamburger” moniker, I was promised so much by the hype surrounding the restaurant itself and let down.
It didn’t taste nearly half as good as the cheaper alternatives at KT’s or Abu Tarek. The plate had very little rice, very little lentils and was little more than a bowl of slimy spaghetti strands swimming in a sea of garlicky water. There were so many transgressions committed against this venerable dish:
- The use of spaghetti pasta – cooked al dente, no less! (Koshary is the exception to the Al Dente rule).
- Incorrect proportions of fried onions, lentils, chickpeas, rice and pasta.
- drowning the plate in Garlic water: I’m sure we all agree that the application of the hot red pepper sauce, garlic vinaigrette, and tomato sauce should *always* be left upto the consumer.
In the end, I realized I need to be more selective of whom I ask for restaurant recommendations. Unfailingly, the first thing mentioned is the dessert they “loved”, the fact they were starving when they got there and that the decor is “really cool”. Well, it turns out the dessert they loved was a 2 day old apple tart bought in from the Marriot Bakery and the decor is a cross between a suburban coffee outlet and a sheesha joint, complete with Bamboo chairs.
For Koshary, Abu Seed fails miserablty. And the search continues..
Cooking Time: 45 Minutes.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
No Food, just Thought.
Why is it that Foodies are so passionate about the tasty, tiny morsels of nourishment that pass their lips? What other value does food have, other than the nutritional?
"You're fat, and look as though you should be, but you're not.”
I’ve been thinking; are there similarities between having a good meal, and finding a suitable romantic partner? Foodies are generally romantic people – just not about people. We wax on poetic about the delightfully creamy texture of a well-cooked risotto or the satisfying meaty flavor of a tender wood grilled steak. A man in love can talk for hours on end to anyone who will listen about his lovers' eyes, figure or even the way she answers the phone with an audible smile. Are they so different?
Foodies also experience food "crushes" - Pringles, anyone? They even have their guilty affairs, akin to soliciting prostitution from an unhygienic purveyor of culinary excess. Hot dog stands, Egyptian Liver sandwiches and impossibly cheap meat kofta sandwiches devoured while hot, and thoroughly enjoyable. Eating such food can be a delight in the heat of the moment, but once the foods (and our loins) have cooled down, we begin to see the folly of our hastiness: Half-cooked meat, strange deposits in the overly spiced sauce, the dirty fingers making the meal. It is the culinary equivalent of eXile's “Whore-r stories”. We've all had one of those. That oh so familiar worry of spending the next week with diarrhea hits you just as you’re taking another bite of a Bacteria sandwich from Abdo Talawoth in Nasr City. Still, you throw caution to the wind. Why? Because it just tastes so damn good!
Foodies know this maxim to be true: No man can live on bread alone. There is no "perfect food" - the one and only food I would eat for the rest of my life. Variety is the spice of life, as they say. I love steaks, but I wouldn’t eat it everyday, would I? That having been said, there are meals that I could not live without. Meals that, were they to disappear from my daily routine, would leave my life a grey and dreary mess, or at the very least, a bland string of circumstances, near misses and idle Tuesdays. Perhaps this maxim applies to love as well.
Every red-blooded, meat eating Man’s ultimate sexual fantasy is the threesome. Every true Foodie’s culinary fantasy is a three-course meal, where all the dishes get along well with each other, and there is no drama afterwards.
Is eating like sex? They both echo that primitive and formative pleasure we experienced as babies from putting things in our mouths. And how many times have you heard someone describe a meal as "orgasmic"? I'd be a fucking millionaire if I had a dollar for each time I heard that line. Nevertheless, I do understand the analogy: the right forkful of nourishment is a beautiful thing to experience. The flavors are perfectly balanced: the sweet with the sour, the salty with the bitter. The texture is sublime; creamy pomme puree, silky smooth gravy, robust meat and the delicate crunch of French fried onions. I've had those before, and they were all pure ecstasy.
I wouldn't go as far as to say they were "orgasmic", though, because that would put women in an unfair comparison with a nice, tender grilled Filet of Beef. And such a comparison would only serve to reinforce the notion that most women tend to repeat quite often:
Men treat women like pieces of meat.
Ok, let us analyse that for a second: do you know the care that is given to a piece of meat?
The best meat comes from a happy animal. Wagyu beef and Kobe beef is culled from cows that do nothing but drink beer all day, get massages and listen to soothing music. That way, their flesh has more of the flavorful fat marbling and is more tender and soft, since the cow has not been using the muscle at all. Even when they’re slaughtered, it’s done quickly and painlessly to prevent a lactic acid build-up in the muscles that could ruin the taste and texture of the meat.
A delicate Rib-eye steak is not something to be pounded into wafer thin protein wafers. It is something to be lovingly tended to, carefully trimmed of excess fat, until all you are left with is a succulent and lean piece of flesh. Lightly seasoned, it delights in the heat of the pan, subtly perfumed with rosemary and thyme and presented in all its glory with a minimum of fanfare. A well-cooked piece of meat is a beautiful thing to behold.
Maybe if we gave our food the same care and attention we gave our palates, then our significant others would be happier, more fulfilled. More tender.
A word to the wise; when giving your better half a diamond ring; do not tell her you’re trying to keep the cow happy.
Cooking time... 20 minutes
"You're fat, and look as though you should be, but you're not.”
I’ve been thinking; are there similarities between having a good meal, and finding a suitable romantic partner? Foodies are generally romantic people – just not about people. We wax on poetic about the delightfully creamy texture of a well-cooked risotto or the satisfying meaty flavor of a tender wood grilled steak. A man in love can talk for hours on end to anyone who will listen about his lovers' eyes, figure or even the way she answers the phone with an audible smile. Are they so different?
Foodies also experience food "crushes" - Pringles, anyone? They even have their guilty affairs, akin to soliciting prostitution from an unhygienic purveyor of culinary excess. Hot dog stands, Egyptian Liver sandwiches and impossibly cheap meat kofta sandwiches devoured while hot, and thoroughly enjoyable. Eating such food can be a delight in the heat of the moment, but once the foods (and our loins) have cooled down, we begin to see the folly of our hastiness: Half-cooked meat, strange deposits in the overly spiced sauce, the dirty fingers making the meal. It is the culinary equivalent of eXile's “Whore-r stories”. We've all had one of those. That oh so familiar worry of spending the next week with diarrhea hits you just as you’re taking another bite of a Bacteria sandwich from Abdo Talawoth in Nasr City. Still, you throw caution to the wind. Why? Because it just tastes so damn good!
Foodies know this maxim to be true: No man can live on bread alone. There is no "perfect food" - the one and only food I would eat for the rest of my life. Variety is the spice of life, as they say. I love steaks, but I wouldn’t eat it everyday, would I? That having been said, there are meals that I could not live without. Meals that, were they to disappear from my daily routine, would leave my life a grey and dreary mess, or at the very least, a bland string of circumstances, near misses and idle Tuesdays. Perhaps this maxim applies to love as well.
Every red-blooded, meat eating Man’s ultimate sexual fantasy is the threesome. Every true Foodie’s culinary fantasy is a three-course meal, where all the dishes get along well with each other, and there is no drama afterwards.
Is eating like sex? They both echo that primitive and formative pleasure we experienced as babies from putting things in our mouths. And how many times have you heard someone describe a meal as "orgasmic"? I'd be a fucking millionaire if I had a dollar for each time I heard that line. Nevertheless, I do understand the analogy: the right forkful of nourishment is a beautiful thing to experience. The flavors are perfectly balanced: the sweet with the sour, the salty with the bitter. The texture is sublime; creamy pomme puree, silky smooth gravy, robust meat and the delicate crunch of French fried onions. I've had those before, and they were all pure ecstasy.
I wouldn't go as far as to say they were "orgasmic", though, because that would put women in an unfair comparison with a nice, tender grilled Filet of Beef. And such a comparison would only serve to reinforce the notion that most women tend to repeat quite often:
Men treat women like pieces of meat.
Ok, let us analyse that for a second: do you know the care that is given to a piece of meat?
The best meat comes from a happy animal. Wagyu beef and Kobe beef is culled from cows that do nothing but drink beer all day, get massages and listen to soothing music. That way, their flesh has more of the flavorful fat marbling and is more tender and soft, since the cow has not been using the muscle at all. Even when they’re slaughtered, it’s done quickly and painlessly to prevent a lactic acid build-up in the muscles that could ruin the taste and texture of the meat.
A delicate Rib-eye steak is not something to be pounded into wafer thin protein wafers. It is something to be lovingly tended to, carefully trimmed of excess fat, until all you are left with is a succulent and lean piece of flesh. Lightly seasoned, it delights in the heat of the pan, subtly perfumed with rosemary and thyme and presented in all its glory with a minimum of fanfare. A well-cooked piece of meat is a beautiful thing to behold.
Maybe if we gave our food the same care and attention we gave our palates, then our significant others would be happier, more fulfilled. More tender.
A word to the wise; when giving your better half a diamond ring; do not tell her you’re trying to keep the cow happy.
Cooking time... 20 minutes
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Hanami Sushi - 14 Bites of pure joy!
I've been ranting and raving about Hanami Sushi to everyone who will listen ever since I tried them for the first time earlier this year. This tiny bastion of freshness is highly recommended to sushi lovers in Cairo, and for a much better price, too!
Lets begin with the location itself. sitting in a tiny building overlooking the nile in Giza, the physical space it occupies is quite small. Zamalek natives will identify it with Dido's, a tiny italian eatery specialising in various pastas, and an institution of good italian pasta. However, the decor of Hanami far surpasses that of Dido's, with wood panelling everywhere, acquariums with colorful fish and a small bar that provides a vantage point from which to witness the handiwork of the chefs. There is a nice ambience, and with space for only 23 people, it ensures that the service is fast, efficient and very attentive. At the same time, there is an air of privacy, so taking your significant other there for a nice dinner is not out of the question. This is in direct contrast to Dido's, where you have to strain to hear your partner over the din of the kitchen, loud music and general hubbub of the other patrons.
Hanami, like Dido's, does one thing well - Sushi. While there are other options on the menu, its clearly the sushi that is the star. In addition to mouthwatering Maguro, succulent Sake and excellent Ebi sushi, one can choose to order the Beef or Chicken Teriyaki - but I do not recommend it. Instead, stick to what they do well; and that also happens to include the tempura shrimp and vegetables.
I will not risk overhyping this restaurant; go try it yourself and tell me whether or not you agree!
Monday, October 22, 2007
Casper and Gambini's
No doubt most of Cairo has been to City Stars, and probably a lot of Cairo's youth has hung out, at one time or another, at Casper and Gambini's on the second floor of Phase I.
This Lebanese born establishment sits spatially and gustatorily above another Lebanese export, Crepaway, for whom I have little love and less than no desire to ever try again.
But lets stick with what's good, and C+G certainly has that in spades. The menu is (thankfully) easy to read and offers more than a few intriguing and highly satisfying dishes to choose from.
Although the tag line is "Taste of tradition", I find very little tradition in their food, and that's not a bad thing at all.
There are fluffy fruit pancakes with maple syrup, caramelized onion frittatas and a BLT sandwich for breakfasts (until 12pm noon), complimented fantastically by an selection of fresh juices or a cup of the best French press coffee in Cairo. Yes I know. To Starbuck's zombies, this is blasphemy, but King Buck's got nothing on the C+G.
The rest of the menu features a wide selection of appetizers, salads, soups and sandwiches, main courses (Pastas and meat/seafood) and a page dedicated to the weekly specials (1 new dish from each section). The specials are definitely worth a try, if, like me, you want to be excited and experience an adventure. To borrow Marco Pierre White's words, let C+G "take you by the hand and guide you through" a wonderful meal.
The desserts, however do not shine as brightly as their savory brethren. The chocolate cake is barely passable, and the cheesecake leaves much to be desired. Not that they're bad, but they're just not *as* good as the rest of the fare on offer. Except one thing: The chocolate Fondant. This is a revelation in desserts, and I recommend ordering one for your partner, or else you'll be fighting over the crumbs. The seemingly innocuous mound of dark chocolate cake holds inside it a river of molten chocolate itching to attack the pure white dome of vanilla ice cream sitting centimeters away. I caught myself ready to lick the plate many a time, only to be stopped by breeding, manners and a disapproving look from my fiance.
All ingredients are fresh, and it shows: starting with the complimentary bread basket, through to the crisp, crunchy and oh-so-succulent salads. Even the sauteed vegetables supporting the various grilled meats and pastas, often overlooked or added as an afterthought at other eateries, are brightly colored and cooked to perfection. The cuts of Fish, chicken or beef are expertly trimmed and shaped, and cooked to order. Only once dd they get my fillet of beef wrong, but they were forgiven - even at well done, it was still tender and flavorful.
More importantly, eating a 3 course meal doesn't mean you've broken the bank nor your waist line. The quantity of food seems to be carefully calculated: not too little so it doesn't seem like they're cheating you on the bill, but just enough so they don't have to cart you out in a wheel barrow. The credo of this establishment is "Some people eat to live, some people eat to live longer". God bless them, they *want* me to live!
I feel like Messrs Casper and Gambini really *do* care about me, and it shows even in the attentiveness of their staff. I've found the service to be quite exceptional, and after eating there regularly for the better part of the past year, I can confidently declare that they have never been tardy. The food is timed perfectly depending on the number of courses ordered and are at hand when you need them, and invisible when you don't.
There is, however, a black hole at the City Stars location: underneath the obligatory flat screen TV, there are two comfortable brown leather couches facing each other. If you enjoy being left alone, then sit there. Keep in mind, you could be there till the end of time before a waiter voluntarily notices you.
In truth, all one really needs to enjoy this place to the fullest is good company and a good appetite. Break bread with some close friends and family, or reconnect with old ones. In that, I suppose, is where the taste of tradition is.
RECOMMENDED:
This Lebanese born establishment sits spatially and gustatorily above another Lebanese export, Crepaway, for whom I have little love and less than no desire to ever try again.
But lets stick with what's good, and C+G certainly has that in spades. The menu is (thankfully) easy to read and offers more than a few intriguing and highly satisfying dishes to choose from.
Although the tag line is "Taste of tradition", I find very little tradition in their food, and that's not a bad thing at all.
There are fluffy fruit pancakes with maple syrup, caramelized onion frittatas and a BLT sandwich for breakfasts (until 12pm noon), complimented fantastically by an selection of fresh juices or a cup of the best French press coffee in Cairo. Yes I know. To Starbuck's zombies, this is blasphemy, but King Buck's got nothing on the C+G.
The rest of the menu features a wide selection of appetizers, salads, soups and sandwiches, main courses (Pastas and meat/seafood) and a page dedicated to the weekly specials (1 new dish from each section). The specials are definitely worth a try, if, like me, you want to be excited and experience an adventure. To borrow Marco Pierre White's words, let C+G "take you by the hand and guide you through" a wonderful meal.
The desserts, however do not shine as brightly as their savory brethren. The chocolate cake is barely passable, and the cheesecake leaves much to be desired. Not that they're bad, but they're just not *as* good as the rest of the fare on offer. Except one thing: The chocolate Fondant. This is a revelation in desserts, and I recommend ordering one for your partner, or else you'll be fighting over the crumbs. The seemingly innocuous mound of dark chocolate cake holds inside it a river of molten chocolate itching to attack the pure white dome of vanilla ice cream sitting centimeters away. I caught myself ready to lick the plate many a time, only to be stopped by breeding, manners and a disapproving look from my fiance.
All ingredients are fresh, and it shows: starting with the complimentary bread basket, through to the crisp, crunchy and oh-so-succulent salads. Even the sauteed vegetables supporting the various grilled meats and pastas, often overlooked or added as an afterthought at other eateries, are brightly colored and cooked to perfection. The cuts of Fish, chicken or beef are expertly trimmed and shaped, and cooked to order. Only once dd they get my fillet of beef wrong, but they were forgiven - even at well done, it was still tender and flavorful.
More importantly, eating a 3 course meal doesn't mean you've broken the bank nor your waist line. The quantity of food seems to be carefully calculated: not too little so it doesn't seem like they're cheating you on the bill, but just enough so they don't have to cart you out in a wheel barrow. The credo of this establishment is "Some people eat to live, some people eat to live longer". God bless them, they *want* me to live!
I feel like Messrs Casper and Gambini really *do* care about me, and it shows even in the attentiveness of their staff. I've found the service to be quite exceptional, and after eating there regularly for the better part of the past year, I can confidently declare that they have never been tardy. The food is timed perfectly depending on the number of courses ordered and are at hand when you need them, and invisible when you don't.
There is, however, a black hole at the City Stars location: underneath the obligatory flat screen TV, there are two comfortable brown leather couches facing each other. If you enjoy being left alone, then sit there. Keep in mind, you could be there till the end of time before a waiter voluntarily notices you.
In truth, all one really needs to enjoy this place to the fullest is good company and a good appetite. Break bread with some close friends and family, or reconnect with old ones. In that, I suppose, is where the taste of tradition is.
RECOMMENDED:
- Salad: Cobb Salad
- Soup: Wild Mushroom Soup
- Sandwiches: Turkey Frontega Press, Grilled Halloumi, Club Sandwich (bread NOT toasted), Philly Cheese steak (focacia bread, untoasted)
- Pasta: Pesto Fusilli, Creamy Tandoori Linguini
- From the Grill/Oven: To Die for Salmon, Grilled Tenderloin, Chicken under a brick
- Appetizers: selection of 3 tapas: Jumbo Prawns, Spring Rolls, Fried Mozzarella
- Desserts: Chocolate Fondant
- Breakfast: Pancakes, Fritatta
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Lucille's burgers are bust.
A couple of months ago, my older brother called me from New Haven to tell me that, according to Time magazine, the best hamburger in the world resides at Lucille's, a Maadi restaurant that is the closest thing we have here in Cairo to a greasy spoon diner.
Now as far as I am concerned, the best hamburger in the world is at Louis' Lunch in New Haven, CT, where it was invented. But I decided to give Lucille's burgers a try. Their pancakes, hash browns and eggs were fantastic, so there has to be some truth to the claim, right?
Wrong.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures, but believe you me, the "imported Australian cheddar" is the worst type of cheese you can buy here, not to mention the cheapest. When melted, it leaves behind a waxy yellow glob and sweats a thick slick of vegetable oil.
The beef patty itself was nothing spectacular, in fact, it was short of ordinary, and easily surpassed by the burgers at Amo Hosny, the current wunderkind of Egyptian Fast Food. My burger arrived blackened by the griddle on the outside, and medium rare in the middle, and yet, it was still terribly dry.
As for the bun, it was neither "sweet" nor "nicely toasted" - It had a slathering of mayonnaise and was used to wipe off the grease from the griddle, so I was helped to a double dose of the Fish Sauce that is painted on the burgers as they're cooked.
Lucille's may be a decent American greasy spoon, indeed the only one in Cairo, and their breakfasts are fantastic - but I cannot extend the same compliment to their burgers. I would use the words "disappointment", "colossal" and "failure".
For the best burgers in Cairo, I recommend Route 66 also in Maadi - unfortunately, they're renovating at the moment and should be reopened within the coming months.
Stay tuned.
Now as far as I am concerned, the best hamburger in the world is at Louis' Lunch in New Haven, CT, where it was invented. But I decided to give Lucille's burgers a try. Their pancakes, hash browns and eggs were fantastic, so there has to be some truth to the claim, right?
Wrong.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures, but believe you me, the "imported Australian cheddar" is the worst type of cheese you can buy here, not to mention the cheapest. When melted, it leaves behind a waxy yellow glob and sweats a thick slick of vegetable oil.
The beef patty itself was nothing spectacular, in fact, it was short of ordinary, and easily surpassed by the burgers at Amo Hosny, the current wunderkind of Egyptian Fast Food. My burger arrived blackened by the griddle on the outside, and medium rare in the middle, and yet, it was still terribly dry.
As for the bun, it was neither "sweet" nor "nicely toasted" - It had a slathering of mayonnaise and was used to wipe off the grease from the griddle, so I was helped to a double dose of the Fish Sauce that is painted on the burgers as they're cooked.
Lucille's may be a decent American greasy spoon, indeed the only one in Cairo, and their breakfasts are fantastic - but I cannot extend the same compliment to their burgers. I would use the words "disappointment", "colossal" and "failure".
For the best burgers in Cairo, I recommend Route 66 also in Maadi - unfortunately, they're renovating at the moment and should be reopened within the coming months.
Stay tuned.
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