On Toast: Delicious French Toast in Zamalek

Despite Cairo’s excessive sweet tooth, which has brought success to countless cupcake and frozen yoghurt shops in recent years, traditional cakes - made properly - are surprisingly short in supply. When recently hit with a cake craving, we hemmed and hawed over who might best satisfy our itch and decided to check out the Zamalek branch of Pumpkin for a slice of that ever-elusive chocolate cake.Located on Taha Hussein Street, Pumpkin is a closet of a sweet shop. With no seating available behind the awkwardly heavy sliding door of the bakery, takeaway is the customers’ only option. We weren’t too bothered by this fact however, especially given that the bickering between the manager and staff member made for an uncomfortable atmosphere. Excitedly, we placed an order for a triple layered chocolate cake (15LE), topped with chocolate shavings. Suggesting that the cake be served warm, the staff advised us to heat it in the microwave for two minutes, which seems an excessive amount of time. As this wouldn’t be an option, we decided to sample some of Pumpkin’s other offerings as well, all of which sell at a price of between 13LE and 16LE per slice.Perhaps most famous for their cheesecakes, Pumpkin offers a variety of the sweet and savoury treat. Opting for a slice of caramel cheesecake we were disappointed to find that the cakes base was thick and crumbly, not the thin, crunchy layer that should hold the cheesecake. The caramel was sweet, yet grainy, and overpowered what was ultimately a thin layer of albeit well-executed cheesecake. The black forest tart came on staff recommendation and fared better. A chocolate cookie base held layers of white chocolate cream and whipped cream, topped with bits of candy bars and marinated cherry. In spite of the tart’s many sugary additions, it proved to be a balanced dessert. The pumpkin meringue tart, was equally satisfying. Chunky pumpkin preserves under peaks of toasted meringue made for an excellent autumn treat, even if the meringue was a bit too soft.Unfortunately our chocolate cake did not stand up to our expectations. Rather than the rich, moist layers of cake between creamy frosting we were hoping for, the cake was hard and dry; as though it had sat in the cooler a few days too long - something that a microwave wouldn’t have been able to fix. The portion is generous however, but Pumpkin does a disservice by cramming it into a takeaway container too small for the height of the cake - proving that this is yet another Cairo bakery that, for all its merit, doesn’t give chocolate cake the credit it deserves.

After a hard day's work, there’s often nothing better than putting your feet up and relaxing with a hot drink and a slice of cake. Of course, Cairo’ cafés are second to none, but finding a sophisticated spot, not filled with shisha smoke, can often be somewhat of a challenge. The Coffee Club is amongst an abundance of dining options in newest Tivoli Dome in Sheikh Zayed.  

As soon as we entered the dome, we spotted the tranquil fountains and greenery bordering the Coffee Club’s comfortable outdoor seating. The entire front of the café opens up to allow a breeze in, whilst the interior is simple, painted in a timeless deep red and cream. The waiter promptly delivered a couple of menus and much to our surprise, the Coffee Club is not just limited to coffee as its name suggests.

Of course, the coffee and frappe sections are the most diverse; with the options of adding syrups, extra shots, marshmallows, ice-cream and swapping caffeinated to decaffeinated. Flavoured tea, fruit juices, mocktails and all the usual sodas are also available. We settled on one flat white coffee (18LE) and an orange juice (20LE). Both were delivered swiftly, with the flat white sporting an artistic illustration on top of its thin layer of froth. The coffee beans were rich and slightly bitter, made with a good amount of milk. The orange juice was fresh, tangy and bitty, making for a rather sharp thirst quencher. 

The food menu was unexpectedly large offering breakfasts of pancakes (25LE), breakfast wraps (32LE), cooked breakfasts (46LE) and fruit salads (20LE) whereas the all day dining menu boasts salads, sandwiches, burgers, pasta, fish and chips (55LE) surf and turf (99LE), fish and meat dishes including steak (99LE). Also on the menu – and a little out of place – is a selection of Thai dishes, namely curries. We chose to sample cheesy garlic bread (19LE), followed by sweet and sour chicken (75LE).

Both portions were substantial; the garlic bread was made from two slices of thick, soft bread, cut into four large triangles and appeared slightly golden on top. The four-cheese topping added a delicious richness, despite being slightly greasy. Our sweet and sour fried chicken pieces were swimming in a flavourful sauce, which although was not overly wonderful, was neither too sweet nor too sour. The generous mound of white rice in the middle was fluffy and well-cooked. 

Their desserts don’t feature on the menu; they must be handpicked from the large glass counter inside the café. From the tempting looking cheesecakes and chocolate mousses, we ended our meal with a big slice of carrot cake (23LE). Unfortunately, the sponge was dry, with a disappointingly thin layer of butter icing on top, and in the middle. The large helping of chantilly cream on the side almost helped curb our disappointment. 

Our overall experience was one of relaxation, nice food and friendly service; however, the Coffee Club does over-complicate the notion of coffee and dessert and although we're glad it does, we feel like they would benefit from concentrating more on their 'signature' desserts.