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

On Cairo’s restaurant these days, being memorable can be hard to achieve. Whether a restaurant has a particular specialisation or tries to offer a ‘whole package’ of sorts, the trick isn’t in bringing in customers – it’s bringing them back.

The sum of Stone Grill Steak House’s suggests it to be Cairo’s next great steakhouse, but unfortunately, our experience fizzled out into a forgettable one.

Located in a central spot in Porto Cairo overlooking it’s dancing fountain, the restaurant boasts a nice outdoor area, with a little to no indoor area existing.. After taking a look into the diverse menu we ordered the Chicken Strips (45LE) and the Mozzarella Sticks (45LE).

The chicken strips came in five pieces, served some fries and a ketchup dip, while the five mozzarella sticks came with some honey mustard sauce. Both had a golden brown colour with a crunchy crust and a tender filling and were both cooked well. A nice, simple but delicious start.

Looking to tetst the kitchen’s mettle at more than just beef, we then ordered the Chicken Cordon Bleu (88LE), American Fish (110LE), and Chef Special Mix Lava (145 LE). Given the choice of their side items, the Cordon bleu came with some fries and mashed potatoes, while the Fish came with a side of brown rice and fries, finally the Mix came with a side of white rice and mashed potatoes.

Coming almost twenty minutes later, the cordon bleu came as a cylindrical chicken log, stuffed with smoked turkey and blue cheese, and served came with even more blue cheese sauce with a side of mashed potatoes and French fries. Each ingredient gave flavour and texture: the smokiness and dryness of the turkey, the juiciness of the tender fried chicken and creaminess and saltiness of the blue cheese all came together perfectly.

Next came the American fish, which were two fried fish fillets smothered with a brown sauce, small pieces of shrimp with a sides of brown rice and French fries. The fillets were spectacular, melting in our mouths with every bite, all while being given a slightly tangy accent by the sauce. As for the brown rice, it worked well with the fish and especially the sauce making it a great all-round dish.

Finally the Chef Special Mix came as a huge black stone grill with a beef medallion and a chicken breast on top, with a side of white rice and mashed potatoes. The beef and chicken were grilled perfectly and had a nice smoky flavour to it.

We ordered the Watermelon Smoothie (30LE), the Oreo Cookie Shake (27LE), and the Mango Shake (27LE) as our drinks. All the drinks had an issue with them; the watermelon was very watery and a bit bland; while both shakes were more milk than shake, especially the mango which had little-to-no flavour.

Like so many Cairo 360 reviews, Stone Grill had its ups and its downs. It’s far from terrible, but did it give us enough reason to return? An interesting trademark dish, maybe? Excellent service? What about a unique atmosphere? The short answer is no.