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

Nothing can top enjoying the warmth of the sun on a chilly winter morning, with a great cup of coffee and a lovely breakfast. Whenever the sun is out, having breakfast outside is the best thing to do. And that’s why we are on the lookout for great places for that simple, yet enjoyable experience. Arkan is one of the first (if not the first) malls, to open with chic cafés and restaurants for Sheikh Zayed residents; so we went to take a look.

Topaz is one of those restaurants that have been there for years, but when we found out they had a breakfast menu, we decided to check it out. The sun was out, so we got an outdoor table, perused the options, and decided to get coffee first. We ordered Cappuccino (38.95) with extra caramel syrup (17.90LE) – the coffee was good, and the caramel syrup portion was on-point. We also got a Hazelnut Latte (45.95LE) – we ordered it to have more water than milk, which exactly is how it came. 

We enjoyed our coffees for a while, and then slowly began to skim through the breakfast section. We believe that the Sandwiches section could also fit in the breakfast criteria, but we specifically wanted to try their breakfasts. Therefore, we chose the Topaz English Breakfast (59.95LE) – three sunny-side-up eggs, served with a layer of crispy white toast, potato croquette, sausages, sautéed mushrooms, and cherry tomatoes in a tortilla basket. This dish had some issues; the mushrooms and the eggs came cold, yet the sausages were hot – so it seemed like some elements were cooked first and got cold. Secondly, the croquettes were extremely bland, but, although the mushrooms were cold, they still tasted good. The eggs were not runny, which was a disappointment, but this is a subjective preference; however, cold items are a big no for anyone.

The second dish was the Smoked Salmon Dill Scrambled Eggs (78.95LE) – served on a layer of crispy white toast, with sautéed cherry tomato, and mushrooms. This dish also had some cons; the mushrooms, again, very tasty but cold – which really is a problem when you’re having a hot breakfast. The fresh dill tasted amazing, but on the other hand, the scrambled eggs and the salmon were in extremely tiny pieces that resembled panko crumbs, which was confusing. Scrambled eggs are scrambled, yes, but, in this dish, the pieces of egg and salmon were too small to get a tasty bite out of them.

All in all, our experience was not the best, but it wasn’t the worst either; it could be better with minimal adjustments. The food needs to be prepared at the same time, or at least kept heated until everything else is ready – that was the biggest mistake we would say. No place is devoid of errors, but it is always essential to keep an eye on those small details.