Egyptian Dining on Egypt Tour with Nile Cruise

Egypt Dining and Food

For centuries Egyptians have been secure in that the Nile valley produced enough food to support the country. The basic food and drink centered on bread and beer which were made from the main crops, wheat and barely. Wealthy people used honey as a sweetener and poor people used dates and fruit juices.

Egyptians liked strong-tasting vegetables such as garlic and onions, and they thought these were good for the health. They also ate peas and beans, lettuce, cucumbers, and leeks. Vegetables were often served with an oil and vinegar dressing. Figs, dates, pomegranates and grapes were the only fruits that could be grown in the hot climate.

Modern Egyptian dining combines elements of Lebanese, Turkish, Syrian, Greek and French influences, evolved to suit local conditions and tastes. Dishes tend to be simple and wholesome and vary somewhat between localities. Nubian cooking, found in southern Egypt, is spicier than the food in the north; in Alexandria Mediterranean influences prevail. Cairo offers a wide range of international cuisines.

Egyptian wines may be slightly below the standard you are used to if you drink wine regularly, but the quality of the local product has improved as a result of growth in the industry. Beer is a traditional beverage and there is a reasonable range of good quality product - one of the most popular local brands is Stella Beer.

There are two approaches to eating out while on your Egypt tour. The first is the local cafés and street stalls which sell one or two simple dishes, and these cater to the bulk of Egyptian customers. Secondly, at a more formal (and expensive) level there are the restaurants catering to middle-class Egyptians and tourists. The latter have menus offering a broader range of dishes, and sometimes they specialise in a foreign cuisine - for example on a Nile cruise. They will also add service charges and taxes to your bill, which usually increases the total by about 15%; and you are also expected to tip in proportion to the size of the bill, maybe below 10% in expensive places or a higher percentage for smaller bills. In juice bars and diners, customers simply leave a few coins as they leave.

The classic Egyptian restaurant or café meal is either a lamb kebab or spiced mince patties accompanied by some dips. The dips usually comprise hummus (made from chickpeas), tahini and maybe aubergine. Another variety is slices of marinated lamb stuffed into pitta bread and garnished with salad and tahini.

In a basic place this could be all they offer, together with some lettuce and tomato salad and bread; or you might find other grilled meats. Chicken is fairly standard, both in cafés and as takeaway food from spit-roast stands. Pigeon is common too, most often served with a spicy stuffing. In fancier places you may also encounter pigeon stew with onions, tomatoes and rice served in a clay pot.

The staples of Egyptian dining are bread, broad beans and taamiya. Bread is eaten with all meals and snacks and comes either like pitta-bread made from white flour a variant made from coarse wholemeal flour. The beans are often boiled and mashed with tomatoes, onions and spices and served with a chopped boiled egg for breakfast. A similar mixture can be used to stuff the pitta-bread sandwiches sold on the street.

Deep-fried patties of green beans mixed with spices are served in pitta bread, often with salad, pickles and sauce made from sesame and tahini.

Another cheap café perennial is macaroni baked into a cake with minced lamb and tomato sauce inside. It's rather bland but very filling. Also common is a mixture of noodles, rice, macaroni, lentils and onions, in either a spicy tomato sauce or a garlic sauce.

There is something resembling a soft pizza which can be either sweet or savoury; the savoury ones are made with pastry stuffed either with white cheese, peppers, mince, egg, onion and olives; the sweet ones are stuffed with raisins, jams, curds or maybe dusted with icing sugar.

Most sandwiches are small rolls with a minute portion of a local pastrami or cheese. Other favourites include: grilled liver with spicy green peppers and onions; small shrimps; and crumbed sheep brains.

From a hygiene point of view, if the cafés have running water connected and it looks clean then it is probably safe; but the street stalls are probably not very safe and discretion should be used in choosing to eat from these vendors.

The more expensive restaurants have similar food plus some more elaborate dishes. Some may precede main courses with a larger selection of dips, plus olives, stuffed vine leaves and soups are sometimes offered. Two common main dishes are vegetables stuffed with tomatoes and aubergines; and a mixed vegetable casserole with chunks of lamb or beef.

Fish is available on some restaurant menus, and is can be grilled or fried and served with salad and chips. There are many types of fish and there could be squid, shrimps or octopus.

Egyptian cheese falls into two main categories; white cheese which resembles Greek feta; and Roman, which is a hard, sharp, yellow cheddar cheese. Imported processed cheeses are also readily available.

There are nut shops offering all kinds of peanuts and edible seeds such as pumpkin, watermelon, and chickpeas; they can be roasted or dried or sugar-coated or salted; and also lollies are usually stocked in these shops.

Cakes are commonly available at patisseries or from street stalls.

Fruits are seasonal and plentiful, including oranges, bananas, strawberries, mangoes, melons, peaches, plums and grapes; and of course dates. All are readily available at street stalls and can also be drunk as juices.