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

With so much fried-food dominating the quicker eats across the Cairo dining scene, restaurants sure do make it hard for us to stay healthy. Yes, there are many specialised eateries providing Cairo with healthier choice, but outside salads, there isn’t much variety – something that can be found at the fry-free AMPM.

AMPM is a quiet booth in the middle of Phase 2 at Citystars with a decent seating area and works off of a pre-made food concept guaranteeing freshly served meals for customers and quick service. Boasting a wide range of salads including Quinoa salad (45LE) and Tex Mex Taco (49LE), main dishes like Osso Bucco and Couscous (79LE), Chicken Bacon and Mushroom (65LE), AMPM caters to every taste – from food enthusiasts to gym addicts.

We kicked things off with Thai Salad (35LE) and Nachos with Toppings (10LE) as our appetisers and both Orange Choc Milk (15LE) and Beach Cocktail (15LE) to drink.

The beach cocktail was a refreshing mixture of peach, orange and cranberry, while the orange chocolate combo – possibly the most underrated combo in the kitchen — was perfect; the citrus of the orange cuts the sweetness of the chocolate perfectly and gave this drink a balanced flavour. Overall, sweetness of both drinks was spot on.

With shredded carrots, cabbage chunks and edamame beans, the Thai salad initially didn’t seem special flavour wise; but with its perfectly cooked grilled chicken, crispy noodles and peanuts all drizzled in soy sauce made this salad sensational and definitely one of a kind. The nachos were much more simple, but equally as tasty; the cheese dip consistency was good and the salsa had a zesty flavour with a spicy kick.

The pre-made concept works for salads, but the idea had us a little worried when it came to the mains. Choosing Smoked Duck with Vermicelli (65LE) and Asian Salmon (79LE), we envisioned dry duck and an undercooked salmon, but the mains turned out to be the highlight of the meal.

Coated with toasted sesame seeds and topped with teriyaki sauce, the salmon was delicious and incredibly moist, while the noodles – cooked with bell peppers, baby corn and mushrooms – that come with the dish made for a perfect side.

As good as the salmon was, the smoked duck was the star of the day; served as thin, tender slices, the duck was cooked perfectly, while the vermicelli, which included prunes and the crushed almonds, perfectly complimented the overall taste with a sweet hint. The dish also came with some potato cubes and crispy onions and though they were delicious, they just didn’t seem to fit with the whole dish and were a little unnecessary.

We finished our meal with AMPM’s brownie (18LE) which was topped with a light drizzle of caramel and chocolate syrup and boasted a a melt-in-your-mouth texture and a chocolate flavour popping in every bite.

All in all, dining at AMPM was a delightful experience. Ironically, the choices we went for are more suitable for a cheat meal rather than lesser-in-calories options and our savoury dishes were much sweeter than both our drinks and dessert. The balance of finding something that’s both delicious and healthy is still a struggle; but for those who are looking for healthier no-fry choices that taste delicious, AMPM is a great option.