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

Manial
was once a luscious, shady neighbourhood filled with trees and palaces along
the Nile banks. The neighbourhood has changed considerably since. What hasn’t changed is Manial’s excellent
location right by the Nile. Andalusia is a restaurant on a docking boat called
Happy Dolphin parked alongside the Manial Corniche next to the Nile Lily boat. The restaurant has a big terrace by the Nile, providing a terrific view.

During
the day, Andalusia offers a buffet lunch but at night you can order from an à-la-carte
meal.The menu is extensive, ranging from sandwiches to pizzas to main courses.
We sampled the generous Greek salad (18LE), which was absolutely fresh and
bursting in flavour, and made exactly the way it was supposed to be. Although meant
as a starter, its portion was big enough to function as a main meal. We also
sampled a dish of tehina (10LE), which tasted fine although it was nothing
extraordinary.

For our
main courses, we sampled the royal fish mix (60LE) and the fillet poivre
(58LE). Again, the portions were extremely generous. The royal fish mix consists
of calamari, cod and shrimp. The calamari and cod were spiced up a bit and
covered with a vegetable mix of onions, peppers and tomato. The shrimp were
grilled and easy to peel.

The
fillet poivre weighed at least 300 gram and had nice, spicy pepper sauce. The
meat was medium grilled as we had requested it, but the sauce covered the whole
plate, making it impossible to taste the meat without being drenched by sauce.
Both meals came with mashed potatoes and vegetable mix as a side dish. The
mashed potatoes were a bit too creamy for this reviewer’s liking, but tasted
delicious when combined with the pepper sauce. The vegetable mix was made up of
carrots, courgettes, broccoli and baked baby potatoes.

For
dessert, we sampled the tiramisu, which tasted good but its texture was more
like that of a tiramisu pudding than authentic tiramisu.

Despite
having good food, Andalusia lacks in its interior design and atmosphere. It is
one big space with tables and chairs lined up without any imagination. Background
music is provided by flat screen TVs.

Service was a little awkward: we received
our main courses before our starters, for which the staff apologised. Although
friendly, the waiters were often hard to spot in the large restaurant; so
getting their attention took some time.

Andalusia
does provide tasty food in generous portions, but it doesn’t deliver in terms of
atmosphere and service despite its great Nile-side location.