Crave

A friend, who is a new Zamalek resident, and I grabbed a bite at Crave after a few hours of frenzied shopping at the European Union Christmas Bazaar, held at the Conrad Hotel.  The Bazaar was a charity event to benefit some Austrian projects, but it was also a rare opportunity to stock up on non-Egyptian wines.  Some Portuguese cheese for Ahmed, a keychain for myself, glass figurines for the kids and much, much alcohol.

My friend had visited Crave with co-workers before and liked it.  We walked in at noon and were the only customers.  I greeted the waiter in Arabic (even if my accent isn't perfect, it really does seem to be appreciated that I try) and asked if they were serving food then.  We had our choice of seats, and lucky for me, my friend knew of a cozy area in the window, two sofas tucked away, overwhelmed with pillows.  Perfect.

We perused the menu, which was eclectic and appealing.  It's not often that I need to contemplate what to order when I dine out in Egypt, but I vacillated a bit between a smart grilled chicken breast with sauteed vegetables (which was listed as a low-calorie option - suspect) and the chicken MCM, a fried breast covered in mozzarella and fried mushrooms.  My decision was made when I spotted the date tulip dessert.  Grilled chicken it would be!

Pizzas, pasta, beef and ravioli dishes are varied and plenty.  Appetizers are a good bet, as there were several offerings that would be ideal to share as a group.  Konafa - it's not just for dessert anymore.  Shrimp konafa was a surprising addition, and would have been a must try if not for my shellfish allergy.

My friend got the chicken stir fry, which was heavily sauced (too much for her taste), and was accompanied by fried rice.  My grilled chicken breasts were perfectly cooked - moist with appetizing grill marks.  The sauteed vegetables were a bit on the oily side (hence the "low calorie" tag seeming suspect), but were well seasoned.  They were the typical Egyptian veggies - okra, carrots and mushrooms.

We lingered over lunch for what seemed to be just a few hours, and ordered the inevitable dessert - date tulip.  The "tulip" was a shallow formed, crispy sort of cookie filled with hot agua (date sauce), halved dates, probably some cinnamon which made it come alive, and a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Yum.  The waiter tried to remove the plate while one more bite remained, and we quickly shot him down.  When we finished, we contemplated asking for bread to mop up the remaining sauce.

The restaurant filled and turned over patrons a few times while we dined, yet we hardly noticed.  We left at six o'clock, spending a full six hours comfortably at Crave, and although we occupied a space that would easily hold six or more, we were never rushed out.

Dinner for two, several sodas, a latte and a shared dessert: LE 210

• Location - Typical side street in Zamalek
  
• Vibe/Atmosphere - Slightly upscale, but unpretentious.  Comfortable, good place for a date.
• Service - Not bad, not exceptional, but they did let us hang out for six hours!
• Menu Choices - Varied and interesting.  I'll go back to try something else.
• Value - Large portions and fairly priced.
• Quality - Very good.
• Restrooms - Not accessible for disabled folks, and a bit of a hike to get to.
• Check/Good Bye - Unceremonious

22A Sharia Taha Hussein, Zamalek
Across from Embassy of Oman
Tel.: +202 736 3870 / 736 9619
Fax: +202 736 9190
No website found


Other Branches
Maadi: 30 Road 213, Degla, New Maadi Tel.: +202 519 8443
Heliopolis: Tivoli Dome Food Court, Omar Ibn El Khattab St., Almaza Sq. Tel.: 02-24153260