Flutter By Birdcage

Very few Asian restaurants in Cairo follow a true Far Eastern tradition in their menu. Birdcage at Semiramis Intercontinental, shines with Thai authenticity!
From the very start of waiting in the foyer and nibbling on the most sophisticated Thai canapés and amuse-bouches, I could tell that I was about to be taken on a very special culinary experience.

A signature appetizer assortment with matching dips had set a high standard for whatever was to come afterwards. The most impressive-looking part was the minced shrimp, which was cooked 'in & around' a stalk of lemongrass.

The Tom Yum soup was pretty good, though a lot milder in heat and flavor than when I had it Thailand. Then, we were presented with a selection of luscious mains. Scallops with Shiitake mushrooms, Lychee Beef Curry, Stir-fried Chicken and Pineapple Rice. The beef tenderloin pieces in the curry were not exactly bite-sized, but I could easily grab them with chopsticks and bite through them without the need for a knife! (Mind you, my teeth have very week cutting power.) The scallops were cooked to perfection and the vibrant rice provided a nice balance to the table.

 

For dessert, I felt both; lost and amazed at the same time. The selection of exotic Asian fruit along with the Tapioca pudding and the sorbet were beautifully presented. I wasn't too sure what exactly I was eating at some point, but it was definitely more than just eye-candy. Gorgeous!

Tasting Japan... in Egypt

Last Tuesday, I had the luxurious opportunity of dining at one of Egypt's best Japanese restaurants; Shogun - Intercontinental (City Stars).

Luckily, a special menu by guest chef; Takagi Kazuo was available. There is a number of guest Chef menus at the hotel these days and I suggest you go check them out as their menus will no longer be available after the 15th of November.

I ordered a Tuna Tartar as a starter, a Japanese Teppan Pepper Beef with Fois Gras Dengaku for my main and a Fruit & Green Tea Ice-cream for dessert.

The Yellowtail Sashimi appetizer was quite exquisite to say the least. The brightness of the colors and freshness of flavors was very festive on the palate. The sophisticated presentation in a Ceviche-like disk, was just an extra piece of the show.

A familiar chef then came to my table and asked about the preferred temperature of my steak, before he rushed to the Teppanyaki station to grill it. The beef was more done than I had hoped for but the sauce was pretty tasty, though a bit salty for my salt-phobic buds. But the sweet glaze and the creaminess of the Fois Gras, provided a great balance for the texture and flavor of the steak.

As soon as the Anmitsu arrived, I couldn't help but snap another shot of that piece of heaven, which I was about to devour. The light pastel shades from the Green Tea Ice-cream to the delicate fruit mix underneath, were a much needed visual relaxation after all the brightness from the starter and the deep amber color of the caramelized steak. I believe that the Anmitsu was missing the characteristic sauce to go with it, but it was delicious nonetheless and I was resisting the temptation to lick the glass that it was served in, after I finished. Not something I like to do in a fine-dining restaurant!

The Grill

Last week I was led to discover one of Egypt's hidden fine dining treasures at Semiramis Intercontinental Hotel.

Because I am always late, I was rushing to find the venue. When I saw an elegant dark wooden entrance at the end of the corridor, I stepped slowly and skeptically - past the wine cellars - into 'The Grill'. I heard the classical music, which was coming from quite a fascinating mini-orchestral band and a grand piano.

Chef Joachim Textor gave a warm welcome speech over some very sophisticated canapés and some well aged wine. From sushi to venison, it was all there in small, bite-sized hors-d'oeuvres.

Then, all the guests were escorted to their candle-lit tables in the dining room overlooking the Nile. The classy appetizers were served; Smoked Salmon Mille Feuille, Sesame Crusted Yellowfin Tuna Tataki, Alaskan King Crab and a Pan-seared Scallop with Papaya Salad. Needless to say, that they were all quite artistically plated.

After that we were met with a duo of soups. One was a clear, dark Forest Mushroom Tea, while the other was a Lobster Cappiccino... Yes, Lobster Cappuccino! Both served in a tea cup and a cappuccino cup respectively. This was pretty original and they were both deeply flavorful.

To refresh our palates before the main course, a delicious tiny Mango Sorbet was served. It was gone in no time!

The main was just an absolute feast on a dish. Beef Wellington, Duck Breast and Rabbit Loin each accompanied by a micro-side of matching cooked vegetable. The meat was fairly tender and the sides where sweet and soft with a crisp outer coating.

A very refined set of desserts to suit all tastes, concluded this magnificent night. Fresh assortments of common and exotic fruit and a very soft dark chocolate pudding cake.

If you are aiming to impress or want to taste something to brag about, then I highly suggest you show off at The Grill!

Ramadan Desserts & Bakes - !عك

Before I start telling you how everyone is destroying the sophistication of Mediterranean pastry art this year, I hope you are all enjoying a happy Ramadan so far! :)

We all love Kunafa with Nutella, right?! ... Wrong! I don't.

The first time this dessert appeared in Ramadan a few years back - after it's famous predecessor 'Kunafa with Mango' - I knew that it was going to trend for all the wrong reasons.

While I believe that the skills of cooking and baking require an innate artistic sense and leave lots of room for creativity, I also believe that some of the best foods we eat today, have had the same recipes for hundreds of years. The reason behind that is; that our palates are very 'smart' and sensitive to the flavor compounds that create true harmonies in our mouths. Let's face it we've been training these suckers to 'taste' two or three times a day, every day, for as long as we have been alive. Geographic location and culture tend to dictate most of what we perceive as 'good flavor pairing'. If you mix five different ingredients, from five different continents, in one dish; then you could end up confusing your taste buds to a disastrous degree. Which explains why fusion cuisine is so highly appreciated in the culinary world. Not anyone can mix & match everything together.

While the discussion about flavor combination theories is extremely long-winded, it is not the point of this post... But rather, the - in my humble opinion - disgrace I see in Ramadan desserts this year.

Imagine.. I tell you that I will make you a dessert, that is basically made of: corn syrup, sugar, honey, jam and molten candy with caramel sauce on top. Not sure about you, but my teeth already hurt, as I typed that. Even if you love the individual components alone (or even paired with other ingredients which are not on this list), doesn't mean that it's a fantabulous idea to throw them all together in one pot!

There's a reason why 'Chocolate Fondant with Vanilla Ice-Cream' is on the top of every dessert menu.. There's a reason why we spread Nutella on a slice of freshly baked white bread and think that we are in heaven.. There's a reason why we dip strawberries in whipped cream and get sexually aroused..! (Oops.. Did I just say that out loud? Ok, maybe that's just me) These classic combos are available all-year-round and they WORK! They have meaning, depth and history in each and every step of making them. And this doesn't mean that they cannot be creatively twisted and adjusted to accommodate the popular local taste in any culture, but Kunafa with Nutella, Red Velvet cake, Maltesers, mango, marshmallows topped with cream, Baklava and chocolate sauce is just a cultural orgy of what we call in Egypt "عك"!*

Ditch the abominations and just try a good home-made Kunafa with Ricotta cheese or Basboosa with a dollop of fresh cream.. You can thank me later.

Ramadan Kareem!

*Culinary nonsense 

Apologies to any bakeries or pastry shops that use these ingredients in their combinations, I love you all and I love your stuff, but that's just my opinion on the dessert trends of Ramadan 2015.

2014 - Egypt's Big F&B Year

The Food & Beverage industry in Egypt, has definitely been on the rise for the past few years. Hotels and restaurants have noticeably upped their game when it comes to food quality. With high-end ingredients becoming more and more available - thanks to special stores like Gourmet Egypt  (among others) - the consumer has become more savvy and aware, as to what 'good food' really tastes like.

Before I started my blog, there were quite a few food-related events, that I wished I had gotten a chance to cover in 2014. The fact that I missed my chance to post back then, will thankfully make this article a lot more concise and to the point than it normally would have been! I will only be mentioning the highlights, that I remember from each event. :)


APRIL - Cairo Bites - Egypt's Biggest Food Festival:

The excitement over an event of such nature in Egypt was driving everyone crazy. Endless crowds of people stormed into the Baron Palace garden to attend Cairo's first dedicated, public food festival!
Unfortunately, it was a hot, dry and windy day. The food booths were very basic and carelessly furnished. The amount of dust and sand flying around was quite off-putting. Apart from cupcakes and shawerma there was not really enough variety, to give it the title of 'Egypt's biggest food festival'! In my opinion it was quite a flop. But this year, I have higher hopes!
If I was to pick one prime contender, that stood out of the crowd; it would be "Beef fi R3'eef - بيف في رغيف".

MAY - Farm To Fork - Food Sustainability Conference:

Apart from the super-long and totally pointless introduction by Dr Moustafa Foda (on behalf of H.E. Dr Laila Iskandar) - Ministry of Environment, this event was pretty interesting. Different thoughts, cultures and - most importantly - generations were thrown together in one big melting pot; to discuss the most pressing issues of food sustainability in Egypt. Prominent shining young stars such as Faris Farrag - Bustan Aquaponics, Amr Bassiouny - Egyptian Hydrofarms and Alia Al Askalany - Luluʼs Kitchen, were engaging in head-to-head discussion with senior industry giants like; Chef Markus Iten - Food Tracks/Cairo Capital Club, Chef Clement Soustra - Semiramis Intercontinental as well as Egypt's prime farming tycoon Mounir Makar - Maʼkar Farms. The heated debates were decorated with a colorful lunch by Semiramis Intercontinental.

AUGUST - Butcher House - Maddi Branch Opening:

One of the names I respect the most among Egypt's food purveyors, is Butcher House. They breed their own cattle and they supervise the process from birth to blade. This is why they have great control over the quality of the meat they produce. Last year, I was invited to attend the opening of their Maadi store and was luckily shown around by Managing Partner; Hussein El Buckley, all the way from the front door up until the walk-in chiller. Everything was clean, precise and certainly very unlike any other butcher's place I've seen in the country!

NOVEMBER - Cookies For Kids - Childhood Cancer Charity Initiative:

Led by a handful of Egyptian young moms, this event was all about fund raising for a good cause with high-quality bakery items. Fortunately enough, I was able to take part and bring my very own Otameal Raisin Cookies to the table. We were able to raise quite a nice sum and got a special 'Thank You' on Instagram from the official 'Cookies For Kids' foundation in America.

NOVEMBER - HACE - Egypt's Most Anticipated Annual Hotel and F&B Event:

HACE is a standard staple every year. All of the biggest names in the Hotel and the Food industry showcase their latest and best products. Everything involved in the industry; from POS machines to exotic fruits and vegetables.
The most interesting part for me, is usually the cooking competitions, that are held in a large cooking arena at the back wall of the exhibition. It really is the biggest national cooking competition in Egypt! Sadly, judging is not easy. The participants don't always read the guidelines correctly and many serious mistakes get swept under the carpet in the absence of the judges eyes. I hope this will be rectified and that these competitions will take a more seriously structured importance in the near future.

NOVEMBER - Green Tourism - The Green Approach to Tourism in Egypt:

Yet another big seminar, that was heavily supported by the Egyptian government and GIZ. After the seemingly never-ending introduction by H.E. Hisham Zaazou - Minister of Tourism, I soon discovered that this event was not really about food. The 'Green Food' section, featuring Zooba Partner Chef; Mousrafa El Refaey, was really not given the time it deserved. Instead, the focus was on 'green' and renewable energy sources and how they can benefit Egypt for a more environmental friendly future. Half-way through, I felt uninterested and left for a light lunch with two of my favorite attendees/speakers from the conference; Mr. Mounir Makar and Diana William from Maʼkar Farms!
The dinner provided by the Conrad Hotel, after the event; was quite elaborately garnished (though the taste was not particularly the best.. Sorry Conrad).

DECEMBER - International Cuisine Festival - Swarming Crowds at Dusit Thani:

Dear friend and founder of Brûlee - Health & Fitness, invited me to attend the International Cuisine Festival at Dusit Thani, after I had spent over a week, trying to get an invitation/ticket (supposedly open to the public.. very confusing).
We got dressed, I picked my friends up and headed to the hotel, only to find that the festival was more resembling of a street market. Shocking! There were a few booths representing the cuisines of various countries, but there was no way you could even get close to them. It was overly crowded with a sample of the general public, who didn't seem to have a clue about the food or what they were eating. No queues or lines here either. Just one big mess.
We only hustled to grab a quick taste, because we were starving. After about 10 minutes at the festival, we left for a luscious dinner at the Ruen Thai Restaurant. Much better than the festival, if you ask me.

Having said all of that, it was still a pretty good year for Food in Egypt. One can only hope that there will be more of that to come in the following years and hope harder that there be an improvement in the overall execution of such delicious events.

Éclairs - à la maison

An éclair is an oblong pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with icing... Or at least that's what Wikipedia has to say about it. But most of know that an éclair is something far more divine!
I always thought that éclairs were so sophisticated and that they must require quite some effort and quality control in order to get them right every time. So, I decided to get in the kitchen and give it a shot. (Without a proper piping bag!)

There's three main parts to an éclair:

1. The choux pastry
2. The custard filling (or pastry cream)
3. The icing on top

The choux dough is probably the hardest part and is actually not that hard at all. It can look like a disastrous mess while you are working on it, but it somehow magically comes together in the end. The real magic happens in the oven, where the pastry rises and puffs up like a balloon. The best part about this is that it's not like baking a cake, you don't need to worry about the dough not rising. It just does... every time!  :)
A professional piping bag will make life easier, but I just used a cheap knock off, which was only good for a single batch.. maybe two.

The custard is easy, but you just need to be careful at the final thickening stage and stir your arm off. Otherwise, you end up with a gruesome, lumpy curdle. I highly recommend you use real vanilla bean pods if you ever want to make custard or vanilla pudding. The difference from using the Cook's Vanillin Sugar packets (very commonly sold in the Egyptian market as Vanilla) is just incredible.
Stuffing the choux shells with the custard is a bit of a b*tch, especially without a piping bag. But ya, it's doable.

Last but not least, the icing.. is not rocket science. I just melted some chocolate and dipped my finished éclairs head-first into the sexy, silky coco glaze.

And here they are! #MidosFirst Éclairs

Yeah... they are not perfectly shaped like the store bought ones from Fauchon. But they taste a thousand times better. And quite frankly - for a first time - I am pretty happy with my beginner results. :D The best part about making your own homemade, wonky-looking éclairs, is that you get to fill them up with a generous amount of custard cream.

Orgasmic-ally delicious! No wonder it's called an 'éclair' - meaning; 'to disappear in a lightning flash' in French.

Did you know that this is the same thing as a profiterole? And cream puffs? A profiterole/cream puff is just round, while an éclair is oblong.

Here's a cream puff I made, too:

So, there you go. You really don't need to be a pastry chef at a five-star hotel to be able to make éclairs. There's plenty of recipes on the Internet. Go on and give it a try. It's fun (if you don't have to clean up the kitchen yourself afterwards).

Lord of the Wings - An Epic Buffalo Experience!

Leaving aside the cliché play on words in the name of this place, Lord of the Wings is most certainly worth visiting, if you are serious wing-lover like myself. The Middle Eastern king of buffalo wings franchise has finally come to Egypt and my hopes are that it's here to stay! There's one in City Stars Shopping Centre and one on the Maddi Corniche (The Platform). With City Stars being the closer option for my friend and I, there was no doubt about the decision to go there.
The diner is marvelously decorated with an American look that has both 'modern' and 'industrial' written all over it.
First, you get a pencil and a menu form from the waiter to fill in yourself. There are three main categories of wing styles; Traditional Wings, Grilled Wings (for the health freak) and Boneless Wings (for the total freak). Then you get to pick a flavor for your sauce. The possibilities seem endless! From mild Buffalo, to suicide Buffalo, back to American BBQ and over to Asian Teriyaki or even Sweet Chili wings! Whatever taste you are craving, you will surely find something to suit it. For sides, there's everything from salads to fries and mashed potatoes, too.
If you are a 'germophobe' who dreads the filthy sticky finger experience, you will be relieved to find a genius invention at Lord of the Wings called "the plastic glove"! I was a happy man that day and didn't even need to wash my hands afterwards. :D

I went for a mix of BBQ and some Teriyaki, while my partner in crime ordered the classic hot Buffalo sauce. It took a while, but as soon as the food arrived, I could tell that those weren't the wings of no Egyptian chicken. They were large, plump and full of flesh. I place my bet on frozen import from the Lord of the Wings global central kitchen or something. The sauces were indeed finger-licking good! Too bad I had already put on that plastic glove, which I didn't really feel like licking to be honest. The chicken however, was somewhat dry, which I reported to the waiter when he came to ask about our meal.
The check was hefty on both the eyes and the wallet. Don't get me wrong here. It was filling (16 pieces), but for the same amount of money I could have had a more 'complete' meal.
All in all, yeah, I sure would go back to that sweet and savory wing marvel. I hope to find juicier chicken next time though, especially if I am paying that much for it.