By Heba Elkayal
The nightlife and restaurant scene in Egypt has in recent years evolved as people’s expectations of local restaurants and bars have increased to match their experiences in restaurants and bars abroad. Well-traveled and cultured foodies have demanded that restaurants and bars in Cairo raise standards of service and taste, but also, keep a restaurant or bar’s offering interesting and up to date with global food and drink trends.
With the hit American TV series “Mad Men” causing many people to return to discovering the art of mixed drinks, or cocktails in the United States, it has trickled down to Europe and the Middle East; Cairo being no exception.
Over the course of the past year, the city’s been witness to a cocktail trend of its own that started with the opening of Aperitivo, the newest offering from the La Bodega restaurant group responsible for the Bistro restaurant and Bistro Lounge.
“Aperitivo, or the pre-dinner drink, is a long standing tradition in Italy. People will pop in for cocktails and light bites after work. For us, it was an ideal concept to introduce to Cairo. Nothing like it existed before in the city. At Aperitivo, you can enjoy a wide selection of cocktails and Milanese snacks, served up tapas-style, before heading into the main dining room for a traditional Italian dinner,” says Suzanne Zeidy, one of the restaurant’s owners.
The cocktail menu has several traditional cocktail offerings and a number of Campari based drinks such as Negronis and Campinos. Aperitivo has a dining room and space that is meant to capture that old school feel with mosaics on the walls of old Campari advertisements. The effect is fun and hints at nostalgia. Not surprisingly, since opening up in December of 2009, the restaurant has been fully booked every night of the year and trying to wangle a reservation requires a lot of begging and pleading should one not be a regular.
A smaller and more casual bar called Amici opened in Zamalek mid-November, intended to be a cocktail bar in the strictest sense: a long menu of cocktails has been tailored by bartender Conrad, who was brought in from London by bar owners Lilian Hanna and Rawy Rizk.
“The concept was to make something completely different,” says Rizk. “It was always a dream to create such a cocktail based concept and now I want my own niche: a small intimate bar with great service, food, and most importantly drinks.”
The bar is intended to contain a limited number of people and therefore reservations are a must. “If you go up and it’s packed, you won’t get the service you’re asking for,” explains Rizk about their strict door policy.
Rizk spotted head barman Conrad at London nightspot Eclipse, famous for its watermelon martinis. Polishman Conrad serves drinks with flair and a handsome smile.
Not only does Amici serve great cocktails made by Conrad, but Rizk has lured the head chef from the Cairo Capital Club, a well known businessmen’s club known for its fantastic kitchen, to create a menu that compliments barman Conrad’s cocktail menu. Penne a la Vodka is one such example.
Although both a dinner and drinks spot, the novelty is the skill of Conrad and his support staff behind the bar. Amici intends to create special nights, and for Christmas will be offering a traditional Christmas dinner with accompanying cocktails. Though still in its soft launch, it seems like all sails are blazing for the bar.
“With Conrad at the bar, you need a special Ladies’ Night Out, our female patrons are in love with Conrad,” says Hanna.
Barman Conrad is causing many hearts to flutter as he serves up fruit based drinks like Kiss-Me-Tinis with a wink and a cheeky smile.
A strawberry based martini with chocolate shavings that is strong and sweet, almost every woman and a few men on any given night are now sipping what is fast becoming Amici’s signature drink. Another recommended offering on the menu is the Espresso martini.
“The best cocktails come from classic cocktails. The key spirits ingredients are gin, vodka, tequila, martini bianco and martini rosso. There’s a strong connection to Italian cocktails which are so far too strong for the palate here in Egypt,” explains Conrad. Thus, they are focusing on fruit based drinks.
“Everyone uses juices in cocktails, not real fruits,” says Conrad. “With Egypt having great seasonal fruits, there’s going to be a lot to play with. Yet, I’m also keen on bringing back the art and science of cocktails.”
There is a new term to define such an artistic science and that is ‘mixologist,’ appropriated by people in the food and beverage industry to emphasize that the secret to a good cocktail, is essentially, a precisely mixed drink done with careful pairings of ingredients and spirits.
The trend for cocktails is taking place not only in bars and restaurants, but also in people’s homes. Two American women, Christina Gangier and Faye Ehrich, currently residing in Cairo, have teamed up to create Cairo Cocktails, a for-hire bartending service.
“We have gone to so many big events or parties in beautiful homes where the host had put so much into decorating, catering and creating something truly beautiful, but when it came to the drinks there was nothing exciting. No interesting cocktails or bartenders who you could hold a conversation with. As Faye and I both had bar experience, we decided that it was a gap we could fill,” says Gangier.
The two women when hired sit down with clients to create a custom-made menu, tailored to the theme of the event and the ingredients the host of the party is able to acquire. Then, recommendations are made by the women for the items that are to be ordered such as glasses and the amount of alcohol and mixers required. A menu is then designed and printed to be available at the party.
“We work in homes or pretty much any events space from a ballroom to an actual bar someone rents out for the night,” says Ehrich.
The response to Cairo Cocktails has been enthusiastic. “We never expected such a positive response to the concept, but we have been able to work with some really amazing event planners at some fantastic parties. More than that, guests really respond well to our drinks, the creativity and effort we put forth and you can tell people are getting into ‘cocktail culture’.”
“People have tasted good cocktails, especially when traveling. Just like good food, everyone wants to try something new and edgy. I hope people walk away from a party understanding what cocktails can add to an event. We’re basically a revolution in your mouth,” says Gangier.
Cairo Cocktails charge according to the event and place in which they’ve been hired.
Amici: 20 Taha Hussein St., New President Hotel, Zamalek. Tel: 019 332 3333. [email protected].
Aperitivo: 157, 26th of July St., Baehler’s Mansions building, Zamalek, Cairo. Tel: 2735 0543. Email: [email protected].
Cairo Cocktails: www.facebook.com/cairo.cocktails; [email protected].
Barman Conrad at Amici enjoys making fruit based drinks.
The women of Cairo Cocktails have been busy during the holiday season bar tending at various parties and private functions.
