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

If you have
to make just one comparison between Mozzarellina and its neighbouring Sun City
Mall restaurants, it’s the prices. Eating out at the Heliopolis shopping centre
has been locked at the higher end of the scale – as can be seen at restaurants
such as Salt.

But Mozzarellina,
despite its elaborate interior, is much easier on your wallet. This comes down to
two things. Firstly, the type of food they serve is affordable and easy.
Secondly, the people behind Mozzarellina seem to have firmly and strategically placed
themselves as an alternative to the food court and the full-out restaurants – a
type of middle ground for hungry shoppers.

Located on
the fifth floor, Mozzarellina’s white and red colour theme makes it stand out
from afar. The seating is simple and comfortable and despite the bright
colours, it’s a no-nonsense restaurant; you come here to eat and nothing more.
The music does nothing to encourage a long stay; old, recognisably, middle-of-the-road
pop will play through the restaurant’s speakers throughout your meal.

The only
other potential source of amusement comes courtesy of the artwork plastered
across the walls, which show a varied selection of old, rustic cooking-themed
posters. Though the restaurant is by no means small, the seating is set up in a
way that allows for large parties.

As its name
suggests, Mozzarellina serves Italian dishes such as a range of pastas and
pizzas, as well as various meat and chicken sandwiches and tagines. We began
our meal with a mozzarella Caesar salad (20LE). It arrived as a mountain of
lettuce doused in dressing and mozzarella balls, though we found the cheese itself to be quite tasteless.

We also
tried the beef shawerma pizza (24LE). Sized to served one person, the base was
thick and delicious, although the shawerma pieces didn’t have that straight fresh,
off-the-spit taste. We also tested the restaurant’s burgers and took a shot at
the jumbo mozzarella burger (26LE), which came highly recommended by our
waiter.

The burger came served with thick, crispy potato wedges and looked like
the giant burgers you get at Fuddruckers. But the difference is in the meat. Mozzarellina’s
burgers are mixed with a assortment of herbs and seasoning and so lacks that
pure beef taste. Sadly, the fresh sesame seed bun was the best thing about the
burger.

A
pedestrian fruit salad (12LE) ended what was ultimately a very
middle-of-the-road meal, but in the end, you get what you pay for at Mozzarellina
and even the excellent service doesn’t make up for kitchen’s know-how.

Overall
though, Mozzarellina is still a notable addition to Sun City Mall and is
unlikely to offend diners. The restaurant’s eclectic menu works in its favour;
one which offers from sweet and sour shrimp to chicken liver to fried chicken drumsticks.
Mozzarellina biggest attribute, however, is that Cairene’s can spend 30LE or
less and walk out satisfied.