Eating & Drinking in Cairo€
Cairo is a street food paradise. Forget the hotel restaurants — the best food is found on the street and in simple local restaurants where Egyptians eat. The cuisine is simple but ingenious: legumes, fresh vegetables, aromatic spices, and endless amounts of bread.
€ Street Food & Budget
Abou Tarek · 16 Maarouf St, Downtown — THE Koshari temple of Cairo. For decades, Abou Tarek has served nothing but Koshari in three sizes (small 25 LE, medium 35 LE, large 45 LE). Four floors, always full, always good. The national dish in perfection.
Foul Mohamed Ahmed · Sharia Tahrir, Downtown — The best ful medames cuisine in the city. Ful (mashed fava beans with oil, lemon, cumin) and ta'amiya (Egyptian falafel made from fava beans, not chickpeas!) wrapped in warm flatbread. Breakfast of champions for 15–30 LE.
Kazouza · 14 Sayyed el-Bakry, Zamalek — Fresh sandwiches, liver (a classic Egyptian street food), shawarma. The local alternative to the chains. 20–50 LE.
€€ Local Restaurants
Zooba · 26 July St, Zamalek — Modern Egyptian street food in a hip atmosphere. Ful in a bowl, ta'amiya wraps, halloumi sandwiches, fresh juices. Shows how good Egyptian food can be when made with love. 100–200 LE per person.
Koshary el-Tahrir · Midan Tahrir — Another Koshari classic, right on Tahrir Square. Perfect after a museum visit. 20–40 LE.
Abou el-Sid · 157 26 July St, Zamalek — Upscale Egyptian cuisine in an oriental setting with lanterns and carpets. Molokhiya (jute leaf soup), mahshi (stuffed vegetables), roz bel laban (rice pudding). 200–400 LE per person.
€€€ Upscale
Naguib Mahfouz Restaurant · Khan el-Khalili — In the historic wikala (caravanserai) of the bazaar. Mezze, grilled dishes, oriental desserts under a lantern-decorated ceiling. Touristy, but atmospheric and the food is solid. 300–500 LE.
Sequoia · 53 Abu El Feda, Zamalek (northern tip of the island) — Rooftop restaurant on the Nile with a view of the city. International cuisine with oriental accents. Sundowners and shisha here are a Cairo highlight. 400–700 LE.
Coffee & Tea
Cairo drinks tea (shai, شاي) — black tea with lots of sugar, served in small glasses. Or Turkish coffee (ahwa, قهوة), served in a copper pot, with or without sugar (order “sada" = without, “mazbout" = medium, “ziyada" = sweet). The traditional Ahwa cafés (coffeehouses) are male domains, but tourists are welcome. Order a tea, play backgammon, and watch the hustle and bustle.