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

As you climb aboard the Nile City Boat in
Zamalek, a full array of assorted cuisines awaits you. One such option is
seafood restaurant Halaket El Samak, which shares an open air deck with Italian
restaurant Carino’s. There’s also a closed seating area, but we opted for a
table outside where the weather was nothing short of exquisite.

The view offered is of Downtown Cairo,
enclosed between the 6th of October and Kasr El Nil bridges and overlooking the Maspero
building and several hotels; but you can’t escape the clear blue sky above you
and the stretch of river right at your side.

Once we were seated, the waiter asked us
what we would like to drink, so we asked for the menu but found to our surprise
that there is no menu. The system goes that there is an open display of fresh
fish, calamari, crabs and jumbo prawns on crushed ice, where you choose your
meal from.

We picked a large sea bass (75LE/kilo) that
was to be grilled with lemon and oil and served with traditional sayadeya rice
with seafood (23LE) and assorted salads.  We were still quite lost without a menu, so
the waiter suggested two different dishes of calamari with lemon and butter
sauce (15LE) and calamari in red hot chilli sauce (20LE), guaranteeing that we would
love them. Hungry and gridlocked for choice, we agreed.

We started with seafood soup (26LE) which, although
tasty, was short on seafood but satisfying nonetheless. Then came a bread
basket full of fresh and warm baladi bread and toasted crispy bread to
accompany a small plate of pickled aubergines, a big bowl of tomatoes and
roccola and a delicious plate of tehina.

Shortly after, the waiters brought in a
large golden skillet with the grilled sea bass on top, two plates in the shape
of a fish with our two calamari dishes and another plate of rice. Although it looked charred black, the grilled sea bass was
moist on the inside and delicately seasoned as to not overcome the fresh taste
of this grand fish. Of the two calamari dishes, the red hot chilli version in particular had a
fresh, hot kick to it, bringing a pleasant spicy taste to the whole meal.

As the night began to fall, tea with mint
came served on a traditional tray with a teapot and the small traditional glass
cups with generous servings of mint. Sipping the tea after a fulfilling meal
and looking up at the moon and the stars with boats passing by, this is the
perfect place for forgetting your worries and just relaxing by the Nile.