The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

Hosary Square is always buzzing. It’s like the downtown area of 6^th of October; the place never sleeps – with shops and restaurants at every corner. Yes, it is busy and loud, and parking is a nightmare; however, some of the restaurants there are really worth the hassle. Restaurants and grills have a different allure in the more localised areas – the flavours just hit differently. Abu Khaled is one of those restaurants where the place is generally clean, the food is tasty, and the service is fast.

Following the restaurants’ norm; Abu Khaled is a two-storey eatery, with the kitchen and takeaway service on the ground floor, with the seating area on the first. We took a table upstairs over-looking the traffic and busy streets – it was lovely because we couldn’t actually hear the outside noises. They didn’t serve us the salads straight away as places like this usually do, so we opted for one Green Salad and a Tahini Dip, each for (7LE), as well as, a Garlic Dip and a Baba Ghanoug, for (8LE) each. All of the salads came fresh and suitably seasoned – especially the Baba Ghanoug; the roasted eggplant flavour was delicious.

As for the grills, we got half a kilo of Lamp Chops (171LE) and another half a kilo of Lamb Kebab (174LE) – both of which were impeccably grilled with an amazing char. The rendered fat gave the chops an exquisite taste, while the kebab was heavenly tender. To accompany this meat feast, we ordered one plate of French Fries (15LE) and a plate of plain rice (12LE). The seemingly ordinary sides went quite well with the flavour-packed salads and meat.

Last but not least, dessert. They aren’t made in-house, because ElDomiaty Patisserie is conveniently just next door. They serve any of their desserts per request; we went with the famous Om Ali (25LE).  This was not served hot, as is conventional; it was a cold version served with ice-cream. We didn’t know before we took the first bite; it was oddly pleasing to eat a cold Om Ali – it was different but tasty. All in all, it was a nice ending to an otherwise filling meal.

We were glad to give Abu Khaled a visit; the portions were satisfying, and the service was admirably fast. There is another branch near the industrial area, also in 6^th of October, but with this quality and prices, we’re expecting more locations in other places in the near future.