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

One day, someone will tell the story of how the world fell in love with a hazelnut chocolate spread created in a small town in Italy. Yes, we speak of the worldwide phenomenon that is Nutella.  

Few countries love to indulge in their sweet-tooth than Egypt and so news of a Nutelleria shop opening at Porto Cairo Mall and bringing Nutella-infused happiness was greeted with a delirium – and we’re not exaggerating when we say that.

With fresh smell of baked chocolate treats ghosting through the area, Nutelleria’s Porto Cairo mall shop is difficult to miss. Decorated with several sizes of Nutella jar – including gigantic ones – and an extravagant melting chocolate fountain, our arrival and amazement was something akin to when Charlie entered into Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory.

Excited to try out everything and anything, we ordered a chocolate waffle infused with Nutella (24LE), a plain waffle with Nutella topping (24LE), a date tart with Nutella sauce (25LE) and a ‘Nutella injection’ – Nutelleria’s avant-gardist approach to consuming Nutella through a syringe (10LE).

With the venues still in soft opening mode, some items on the menu are unavailable – but everything we were able to get our hands on were outstanding. The waffles were the perfect combo of soft and crispy, smooth and chewy, with the Nutella adding the perfect chocolate kick.   

The base of the date tart was crunchy and crisp making for a perfect textural contrast with the soft dates and rich Nutella sauce. We then sealed the deal with a Nutella injection comprised of Nutella’s pure hazelnut spread – it’s like a neater version of eating Nutella with a spoon.    

Recovering from our Nutella fiesta, we were offered a complimentary Fiore Tea by the friendly staff; a tea made from a dry flower that blooms in hot water. Served with basil leaves, the tea, which filled the air with a strong, sweet aroma of sweetness, was perfectly soothing.

Nutelleria also offers a large variety of cheesecakes, assorted tarts, ice-cream, as well as many other chocolaty items, soon to be available after their ground opening – and based on our visit, we can’t wait. In the end the experience delivered what it promised. There’s no critiquing Nutella itself – it is what it is – but as fans, we were relieved to find that the kitchen’s craft was up to scratch – let’s just hope it stays that way.