The best restaurants Cairo

Koshari, foul, taamia, foul-taameya sandwiches, roasted sweet potatoes... Zööba offers everything traditional in a young, funky and above all clean setting. It surfs the "Clean Street Food" trend with great success. Around a table, you can taste local and refined food. You can even buy vacuum-packed take-away portions or have them delivered. The bread, prepared on the spot, is delicious and a perfect accompaniment to brunch at the weekend. It should be noted that the restaurant offers many vegetarian specialities à la carte.

This Louis Farouk-style establishment is hidden behind a heavy, studded copper door. Like the company's other restaurants, it serves delicious Egyptian and Oriental specialities of the highest quality: tajines, stews, molokheyas, grilled meats... Shisha smoking is also available. Reservations are essential, as the place, a victim of its own success, fills up fast. This is the place to go for good Egyptian food in a subdued yet friendly atmosphere. Refined service. 200% recommended!

It was on the basis of Chinese luck that the Four Seasons chose to name its restaurant of Cantonese specialities. With a modern and elegant decoration, impeccable service and dim sums sums concocted by a chef straight from Shanghai. True connoisseurs of Chinese cuisine may be a little disappointed because the dishes are good but not all of them are excellent. In the Egyptian capital, the 8 remains nevertheless the best address for Chinese cuisine, with the added bonus of a majestic view of the longest river in Africa.

In Egyptian, it is pronounced "Azaz". One of the best Egyptian fast-food restaurants in Cairo where you can bite into a sandwich of foul or ta'amiyya (falafels) for a ridiculously low price. The shawarma, not much more expensive, is excellent. Famous all over the capital for its lentil soup, perfect to warm you up during the short Cairo winter. The place is very popular with the Egyptians, so expect to be waiting in line, especially if you order take-out. This is surely the best option, the room upstairs is not really charming.

Le Pacha 1901 is both a place to eat and a place to be entertained. Originally a turn-of-the-century merchant ship, Le Pacha has been transformed into a nostalgic and magical place. Moored along the banks of the Nile, alongside the island of Gezira, the ship features 10 restaurants and 2 function rooms offering delicious international cuisine. Service is impeccable, and you can enjoy spectacular views of the Nile. You'll also be able to enjoy top-quality home service.

The house of the koshari in Cairo where one comes almost as a pilgrim. Amusing mention on the front: " We have no other branches " (we have no other addresses)... The place thus marks its unique character, conscious of its success in the capital. This three-storey building is not often empty. Every nook and cranny has a photo of Abu Tarek, the creator of this institution. Many young couples and groups of Egyptian friends and families can be seen there. The atmosphere is very friendly and the service very satisfactory.

At Oldish, you can enjoy Egyptian specialties just a stone's throw from Tahrir Square, in a really pleasant setting. Melokhia, moussaka or hawawshi... the great classics of Egyptian and regional cuisine are tastefully prepared. Desserts are not to be outdone either. You'll have a particularly pleasant time in the small courtyard set around a huge palm tree with its pretty brick walls. Oldish offers a peaceful atmosphere in the heart of a busy street. Unique in the neighborhood! We recommend it.

Just a stone's throw from Tahir Square, this small fast-food Lebanese restaurant is a favorite with Cairoites. You can eat in or take away in the small room upstairs, but you'll probably have to wait at least 10 or 15 minutes, as the place is so busy. Here you can enjoy chawarma and other kebabs, in a simple but clean and flavorful kitchen. It's a friendly, family atmosphere, an opportunity to eat on the go like the locals, without any hygiene risks. We recommend it!

A beautiful address in the moonlight on this boat moored on the banks of the Nile. The bluish decoration of the halogen lamps camouflages to the guests the lights of the city that surrounds them. With the swaying tunes of the house DJ, the meals are very pleasant with a menu that offers many Japanese specialties and especially raw fish. The service is attentive but if you are not known to the staff, they will tend to place you anywhere. Do not hesitate to protest and ask for the free table you like.

If you feel like an overdose of tahini and keftas, no hesitation: this high-flying table serves excellent Japanese creations. It is certainly the best Japanese restaurant in town, everything is fresh and made according to the rules of the art: sushi, maki, yakitoris, gyosas? The chef signs specialities of curries and rolls absolutely amazing. So as not to spoil anything during the meal: the room arranged around an aquarium is very pleasant and the service adorable.

This gourmet restaurant offers an extraordinary view of the city of Cairo. From the ^42nd floor, the restaurant's walkway offers diners a unique view of the city and its river. However, this restaurant is not the most renowned for its cuisine. If you wish to sample the delights of Cairo, you may prefer another address... Reservations are required and smart dress is mandatory. Children are not admitted. The restaurant is closed during Ramadan. No alcohol is served, as in the rest of the hotel.

A very fashionable snack café in Cairo. A la carte, you can find light and balanced dishes, which remains quite rare! This is their niche, they offer a selection of "healthy" salads and sandwiches with even a breakfast: yoghurt, granola and seasonal fruit or avocado toast and poached egg. But the gourmands are not to be outdone with a good choice of pastries ranging from Carrot cake to chocolate cake and salted butter! The coffee is good, the smoothies also with the number of calories displayed for each composition as a bonus!

For a vegetarian sandwich, a fresh salad, a fresh fruit juice or a menu of fifteen coffee flavours, the perfect place to stop. This sign offers a real digestive break after so many keftas! But above all, it's the perfect place for a quick lunch or a gourmet break, as it offers sweets to fall for: try the chocolate molten cake with ice cream, it's to be damned... pleasure! Other Cilantros exist in Cairo, opposite the American University, in Maadi, in Heliopolis.

This prestigious place brews as many trendy Egyptians as foreigners in residence in Cairo. On the right, the lounge which will offer you Italian and world fusion dishes to the same type of music; on the left, the pub and its restaurant. In the lounge as well as in the restaurant, the cuisine is tasty and neat. Bathed in a delicate play of lights, the decor is superb and the atmosphere is always very pleasant. Beautiful cocktail menu and a cigar cellar for the amateurs. It is a very good address so it is better to book at the weekend.

Located in a dark alleyway between Talaat Harb Street and Kasr El Nil, Estoril is the epitome of the cool, old school bar in the city centre. You don't really go to this place to eat good food, but to immerse yourself in a city and its people, the researchers, writers and artists, young and old, who build and deconstruct the history of this beautiful country. The place is very crowded, and often very smoky. The place offers a greater choice of alcohol. A little more expensive than elsewhere, but it's worth it.

Two addresses in refreshing Al-Azhar Park. Studio Misr is located on top of a hill with a breathtaking view of the citadel and minarets of the Islamic city. To be recommended: "citadel" grills. In the evening, it's best to make a reservation. The second, Lakeside, located on the banks of an artificial lake, gives a panoramic view of the Ayyubid wall of the old city. Ideal to take a fresh chicha and oriental mezze, and only that: the rest is very mediocre. No alcohol served.

One of Cairo's most pleasant (and touristy!) eateries, with its original wood-panelled decor. It is located at the entrance to the eponymous street of one of the feminists who left her mark on her country's history, Hoda Sha'raoui. The atmosphere is reminiscent of Egypt in the 1920s. The tables are arranged lengthways, in a wide room with a very high ceiling. It's the ideal place to try the classics of Egyptian cuisine: pigeon specialties, kebab, molokheya and grilled fish, all at reasonable prices. The waiters are very friendly.

The essence of this restaurant lies in its magnificent view of the Nile which it dominates and the Saqqarah palm grove opposite. The cuisine is of good quality and the fish is fresh: you choose from the stall what you would like and it is prepared at your convenience, grilled, baked or fried. The room is a bit old but it is still a very good spot to have a chicha just before sunset. You can also rent feluccas, not far away. Service sometimes distracted... the establishment serves alcohol.

A restaurant-bar in the heart of downtown, cut off from the hustle and bustle by an inner courtyard at the end of a small passageway of the same name. A meeting place for artists, journalists and business people. Good ventilation for non-smokers. In summer, its second air-conditioned room, with its red and black tones, offers a small island of coolness. Excellent Lebanese and Egyptian mezze dishes, ideal for aperitifs and light snacks. Bigger appetites will also find quality cuisine with meat specialties, stuffed pigeon and seafood.

As its name suggests, this resto-bistrot-club offers an interesting choice of vegetarian dishes but also some meat dishes to satisfy all tastes. The cuisine is particularly inventive with a menu that changes very regularly and dares very original combinations. It is also one of the spots of the Cairo night with its nightclub arranged upstairs. Live DJs and a good atmosphere are there for you. Attention: it is a trendy place very appreciated so it is better to reserve the weekend to have a place.