Egypt Food and Drink Guide: What to Eat and Drink

A taste of Egypt

Egyptian food is hearty, vegetable-heavy and built around bread, beans and bold spice. Meals are social, generous and surprisingly affordable. Here is what to seek out and how to order like a local.

Signature dishes

• Koshary — Egypt's national dish: rice, lentils, macaroni and chickpeas topped with crispy fried onions, spicy tomato sauce and garlic-vinegar. Try Abou Tarek in Cairo, a koshary institution.
• Ful medames — slow-cooked fava beans with cumin, oil and lemon, the classic breakfast.
• Taameya — Egypt's fava-bean falafel, greener and fluffier than the chickpea version.
• Molokhia — a green jute-leaf stew, usually with rabbit or chicken and plenty of garlic.
• Hamam mahshi — pigeon stuffed with seasoned freekeh or rice, a celebrated treat.
• Fattah — layers of rice, crisp bread and meat in garlic-tomato sauce, eaten at feasts.

Street food to try

• Hawawshi — spiced minced meat baked inside crisp bread.
• Shawarma and kofta — grilled and stuffed into baladi bread.
• Feteer meshaltet — flaky layered pastry, sweet or savoury.
• Roasted sweet potato (batata) sold from carts in winter.

Drinks

• Karkade — hibiscus tea, served hot or iced, tart and ruby-red.
• Sahlab — warm, thick milk drink topped with nuts and cinnamon.
• Fresh juices — mango, sugarcane (asab) and guava from juice bars everywhere.
• Shai — strong black tea, often with fresh mint (na'na).
• Ahwa — Turkish-style coffee; ask for *mazbout* (medium-sweet).

Dining tips and etiquette

• Eat with the right hand; bread doubles as a utensil.
• It's polite to accept tea or coffee when offered.
• Tip around 10 to 12 percent in restaurants.
• Drink bottled water; ask for it sealed.
• Ramadan reshapes hours — many places open only after sunset (iftar).
• A full street meal can cost under 100 EGP; sit-down restaurants more.

Stay connected in Egypt

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