Villa D’Este at the Conrad serves up classy and tasty Italian food
CAIRO: Everybody loves Italian food and when you’ve got a craving for a real taste of Italy, keep the pleasant Villa D Este at the Cairo Conrad in mind.
Although it is situated on the crowded Corniche, parking is easy. Just turn into the Conrad’s roomy parking lot and take the elevator to the lobby.
The restaurant itself is dimly light in a baroque style. Big crystal chandeliers dot the ceilings of the not so big room. The walls are covered in gothic murals. A large flower arrangement serves as the center piece of the room.
After you are guided to your seats, you are asked to switch off your phone. A nice touch at a fancy restaurant, it is not very common in Egypt.
My appetizer was a vegetable platter made out of eggplant, zucchini and carrots. It was very tasty actually; like a vegetable capriccio, thinly sliced, sautéed, not raw.
Next was fresh pasta. Ravioli stuffed with spinach in a red sauce with fresh tomatoes. The pasta was cooked perfectly al dente so it was a bit chewy in a good way.
The main course was fish with mashed potatoes and parsley. It was very good, and again, very fresh. Unfortunately I overly full at that point and I had to leave room for the dessert.
The tiramisu was very satisfying; it could have been made in the dish’s native Tuscany. Each ingredient was top quality, a perfect combo of the rich taste of mascarpone cheese and lady fingers melting in your mouth. The dessert’s name, tiramisu, means pick-me-up, just use your imagination as to why.
The staff is generally very attentive and tries very hard to speak English at all times.
The restaurant gets busy, but does not get too crowded. Currently, just like most hotels during the summer season, the majority of the cliental are Arabs-on-holiday.
For once, this is a restaurant where people pay more attention to the quality of the food than the aesthetic décor and atmosphere, although it is not at all unimpressive in those areas. Villa D Este definitely deserves a visit on those days when you’re craving some good Italian cuisine.
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The restaurant follows in the footsteps of the centuries-old original Villa D’Este in North Italy
