Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Kowloon Korean and Chinese - Cairo
Chinese food is everywhere. It has saturated Canada, co-existed remarkably with the local cuisine in India, and has rejuvenated Mongolian taste buds. Most major cities around the world boast what has come to be known as a “Chinatown.” How common is this word? Well, the Microsoft Word dictionary accepts it. Type in “Indiatown” and it comes up as a spelling mistake.
And yet, Cairo seems to lack this phenomenon—that little section of town famous for produce and strange herbal medicines. There are a few Chinese restaurants here and there, but they tended to be a bit more expensive than the average. Despite the foreseen lightening of my pocketbook, I had to know what Chinese food tasted like in Egypt.
On my walk to work, I always pass by this sign that says “Kowloon Korean & Chinese Food.” The restaurant happens to be part of the Cleopatra Hotel just off of Tahrir Square. Culinary monotony is a big problem here in Egypt, so there exists a desire to spend a bit more for flavours that might just arouse your palette. I’d say Korean and Chinese fit that criteria pretty well, so I gathered up a bunch of different nationalities and headed there for an East Asian feast.
Upon entrance into the dining area, it was apparent that the patronage was from, where else, East Asia. Perfect. That means that the food must be good…or that this is the only choice in town, but still better than the Egyptian alternative. I could smell the Korean kimchi, and my mouth watered at the sight of some of the served food.
The menu was expansive, covering a wide variety of meat, seafood, soup, noodle, and vegetable dishes. After some pre-order bickering, we decided on Beef BBQ, Stir-fried beef with green chili, deep-fried chicken in sweet and sour sauce, and Ma-Po’s Fried Bean Curd. Some spring rolls, jasmine tea, and soup were also ordered, with kimchi provided as a complimentary appetizer.
Overall, I’d say the food was pretty good, and I’ll definitely go back once I try out the other Chinese restaurants in town.. The only oddity was that the “vegetarian” Ma-Po’s Bean Curd came with chunks of beef in it.
And yet, Cairo seems to lack this phenomenon—that little section of town famous for produce and strange herbal medicines. There are a few Chinese restaurants here and there, but they tended to be a bit more expensive than the average. Despite the foreseen lightening of my pocketbook, I had to know what Chinese food tasted like in Egypt.
On my walk to work, I always pass by this sign that says “Kowloon Korean & Chinese Food.” The restaurant happens to be part of the Cleopatra Hotel just off of Tahrir Square. Culinary monotony is a big problem here in Egypt, so there exists a desire to spend a bit more for flavours that might just arouse your palette. I’d say Korean and Chinese fit that criteria pretty well, so I gathered up a bunch of different nationalities and headed there for an East Asian feast.
Upon entrance into the dining area, it was apparent that the patronage was from, where else, East Asia. Perfect. That means that the food must be good…or that this is the only choice in town, but still better than the Egyptian alternative. I could smell the Korean kimchi, and my mouth watered at the sight of some of the served food.
The menu was expansive, covering a wide variety of meat, seafood, soup, noodle, and vegetable dishes. After some pre-order bickering, we decided on Beef BBQ, Stir-fried beef with green chili, deep-fried chicken in sweet and sour sauce, and Ma-Po’s Fried Bean Curd. Some spring rolls, jasmine tea, and soup were also ordered, with kimchi provided as a complimentary appetizer.
Overall, I’d say the food was pretty good, and I’ll definitely go back once I try out the other Chinese restaurants in town.. The only oddity was that the “vegetarian” Ma-Po’s Bean Curd came with chunks of beef in it.
posted by kent at 4:07 AM
2 Comments:
Hi,
I want to go this restaurant kowloon,
you said its expensive.. how expensive?
I honestly don't remember. Last time I was there was probably 2 1/2 years ago.
A main dish costs something like 35-70 LE. Maybe things have changed though.
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