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

Have you ever noticed how Cairenes automatically switch to ‘competitive mode’ when invited to a dish party? Everyone wants their dish to be the centre of attention, but with minimal effort exerted. This is where Cinnabon’s Ramadan Bites come  in.

The boxes come in two sizes; a big box of 30 Cinnabon Bites is 150LE and a smaller 24-piece box is 125LE. The big box has a fixed set of five each of classic Cinnabon, Pecanbon, Chocobon, basbousa, konafa and pistachios with honey. Meanwhile, the small box includes the same variety but four each, and you can switch one of the Ramadan-themed ones to mixed berries bites.

We opted for the small box (134LE including delivery charges). We also wanted to try the new lemon and coconut Cinnabon but sadly it wasn’t available. An hour later, the delivery man came with our box and although the box design was great, the transparent part on top was just full of cream cheese and caramel stains – it wasn’t a particularly presentable box to take to a gathering.

We all know about the classic Cinnabon Bites; very soft and fluffy with slightly crispy edges surrounding that delicious, trademark sugar and cinnamon mix, and the rich cream cheese frosting had a spot on sweetness.

The same goes for the Chocobon which was pretty much the same, only it had extra drizzle of chocolate sauce that is perfect for people who don’t like overly-sweet sauces, and the Pecanbon which had extra pecans on top that added a great crunch to complement its exquisitely light caramel sauce.

As for Ramadan items, the basbousa one was basically a classic Cinnabon bite topped with a piece of basbousa which didn’t make any sense at all and added no flavour. The basbousa on its own tasted bland and had a mushy texture. The konafa, meanwhile, one was even worse. It was topped with a sprinkle of very dry konafa that also didn’t add any flavour.

On the other hand, the pistachios and honey bite was the bomb. We loved how the rich and nutty flavour of the pistachios and honey worked perfectly with the cream cheese frosting, giving it just enough of Ramadan spin without going over the top. This should definitely stay on the regular menu.

We appreciate the idea of the Cinnabon Bites. Despite the messy overall presentation, it’s cheap compared to other special Ramada desserts in the market, the classics tasted great, and we loved the pistachios with honey bites. Based on our experience, though, we recommend that you go pick up your box from the store to make sure it looks as presentable as possible, while also switching the basbousa or konafa with the mixed berries bites.