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

Juggling responsibilities and dealing with daily routines can drive anyone crazy and burn them out.However there are some venues that pamper and cater so they can pull us from the reality of Cairo’s hustle and bustle of Cairo.

Located at Cairo Festival City with a view overlooking the dancing fountain, Sophia’s Garden gives out a feeling of relaxation, as if you’re at a seaside resort on the shores of Santorini, thanks to its dominant white colour contrasted by the cool baby blue. The Alexandrian-Greek fusion is evident in everything from the menu to the overall aesthetic.

After making our order, our drinks arrived first in interesting looking glasses. The Mango (25LE) came in an ola-shaped glass and had a sweet, fresh taste that was very cool and refreshing, while the Banana Peanut(45LE) came in a small glass pitcher and had a strong peanut butter flavour with a banana aftertaste while having a thick smoothie-like texture.

Ten minutes later, our appetisers arrived;first, the mix satay (49LE)came as assix skewers, three of beef and three of chicken,alongside some sour cream and peanut sauces. As for the BBQ chicken stuffed bread (48LE), it came as a sliced loaf of stuffed bread topped with some melted mozzarella cheese and tomato sauce.

The chicken and beef were grilled thoroughly and had a nice earthy taste to them which worked well with the tangy, savoury taste of the peanut sauce, which had peanut pieces,and the minty sour cream. The BBQ chicken bread, meanwhile, had grilled chicken pieces topped with sweet tasting BBQ sauce alongside some grilled peppers and onion slices, making a very flavourful mix of both sweet and sour with tender bread.

Almost twenty minutes later, our main dishes arrived with the Fish Fillet Gratin (85LE) coming as a huge fillet topped with baby shrimp and a large amount of melted mozzarella cheese, along with a small rice pot mixed with more baby shrimp and vegetables. The tender fish fillet was amazing and cooked perfectly with the heavy mozzarella cheese providing an amazing gooeybackdrop, especially when mixed with the wonderfully spiced rice, making it the highlight of our meal.

Our second dish was the Lady Fillet (145LE), which came as four almost medallion-sizedpieces of beef on a pan,along with some mashed potatoes and three different cups with mustard, pepper and brown mushroom sauces in them.

The beef was cooked and seasoned well and worked well with all the sauces, while the mashed potatoes had a nice smooth texture, was rich with flavour and seasoned perfectly.

Our final dish was the famous Caramel Burger (50LE).Chocolate ice-cream stands in for the patty and a cookie for the cheese, while the top bun is was caramel covered cheesecake, with actual sesame seeds, and the bottom bun was a caramel caked.

Slicing into the burger was like slicing into a piece of heaven and the true magic is when you get a little bit of everything in one bite. The creamy caramel cheesecake, the chewy cake, the crunchy cookie and the chocolaty ice-cream made the experience pure bliss.

Sophia’s Garden has perfected its craft, with amazing food, great staff, and a relaxing, cosy atmosphere; a combination that every restaurant strive to achieve, but few actually do. Although a bit pricy compared to other restaurants nearby, it’s still worth it, with high quality in both service and its servings.