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

Let’s face it; there are at least three restaurants in your vicinity that can deliver you a shawerma. While we love a good shawerma, and the cuisine of the Levant in general, there are just too many subpar restaurants ruining the good name of Syrian food.

It’s not just about the meat or chicken; it’s the little things like the tomeya, the saj bread and the marinade – the kind of things that truly elevate the experience. If you’ve been feeling like all the Syrian food you’ve been trying recently all tastes the same, rejoice because you won’t believe how much better this restaurant is.

Located at the very end of Road 233 in Maadi, Khayrat El Sham is a very modestly-sized restaurant that operates on takeaway and delivery. Don’t be fooled by the size, or the modesty, because you’re about to be blown away by flavour.

The menu features shawerma sandwiches, meals and fattahs, as well as grill options that are served as meals or sandwiches including Shish Taouk, Msahab (boneless chicken), kofta and kebbeh. The appetisers include fattoush, tabouleh, kebbeh and a mean pomegranate molasses.

We opted for a Shish Taouk Meal (31LE) as well as a Meat Shawerma Fattah (31LE) alongside an extra order of Yellow Basmati Rice (7LE), Coleslaw (8LE) and a Kofta Sandwich (19LE).

The Shish Taouk Meal features two skewers of heavily marinated, including pomegranate molasses, chicken breast cubes, French fries, saj bread, Tomeya and coleslaw. The portion of chicken is very generous, and is hands down the most flavorsome Shish Taouk in town. While the French fries are just about average and the coleslaw decent, the Tomeya is phenomenal, and combining all together into the saj bread creates an incredible bite.

The Meat Shawerma Fattah fared just as well. Again, the portion was very generous, the slices of beef shawerma just the right amount of crispy and the well cooked basmati rice combined with crunchy bread and the tomeya created another winning mix.

The Kofta Sandwich, featuring parsley, tehina, onions and pickles, was also a hit, thanks to the tasty tehina and delectable and perfectly cooked kofta that fell apart before you even bit into it.

The extra order of Yellow Basmati Rice and Coleslaw, which we had ordered in fear of not getting full, both surprised us in their portions in that they could feed up to three people. 

While there is no option to dine in at Khayrat El Sham’s Maadi branch, such good food may actually be best indulged in at home. We’ve tried so many Syrian and Lebanese restaurants, even those of a much higher caliber when it comes to presentation and the venue itself, but few churn out food as good as Khairat El Sham.