Once the home of a legendary theatrical actor, it's now one of Cairo's exclusive hideouts. Rasha Sadek describes the transformation Al-Haram St. A sign pointing to the Taha Hussein Museum leads to Youssef Wahbi's villa, the now five-star Sheraton Royal Gardens Hotel. The entrance to the hotel is a portal gate that takes you immediately from the hassle of noisy Cairo to a lobby embalmed in serenity. Gradually the Andalusian ferforgé deco supplants the hectic scenes of cars and smoke as music drags you away from the anguishing blare of horns. There's a cultural story here: the hotel was once the residence of the founder of Egyptian theatre. A recognised name among artisans in show-biz, Wahbi, genius more than talented, lived in a world of his own, collecting Japanese and Pharaonic antiques. They no longer remain in the hotel but their ambiance does. In 1940 Wahbi built his small villa, then built a larger one to receive his guests -- King Farouk and former President Anwar El-Sadat, then a member of the Free Officers' Movement, often dropped by. Wahbi's residence villa is now the hotel's Fire Place, a Mexican-Californian cuisine restaurant and bar taking up two floors. A zany piece of architecture, the villa was decorated to look like a sailing ship, steering wheel and parrot cage included. However, the Fire Place is now closed for renovation; something about adding billiard tables I heard. As for the guests' residence, the Sheraton Royal Gardens Hotel turned it into the Banquet, the building that hosts meetings, and wedding ballrooms that can seat up to 250 people. The Grand Ballroom, decorated in chocolate-brown wood with cream hued fabric panels, is fitted with audio-visual equipment and a built-in stage. A foyer links the ballroom and two other meeting venues to an interior area suitable for coffee and tea breaks. The discotheque, which only operates during the summer, is also in this building, with an outstanding view of the pool. What's really special about the Banquet building is the aroma of the past. A five-metre black chandelier dangling from the high ceiling and a long staircase surrounded by falling water from both sides. Perfect for your wedding dream. The antique ambiance aside, the two pools are surrounded by an exotic rock garden adorned with waterfalls and palm trees. Tropical is what describes the pools best. The smaller is for kids and has a Jacuzzi. You can relax while the Jacuzzi takes your tire away and still be in close range of your children. In the centre of the garden is the pool bar offering cocktails. As night falls, the pool area is slightly illuminated, giving that romantic feel. The hotel's design allows for all rooms to have a view of the pool, and it's a charming one. Only 153 rooms and suites in the hotel, but that is not a sore point. The less the rooms, the more guests feel the coziness of being home. And the rooms are spacious with terraces exposing the Wahbi villa and the tropical garden. As you walk into the lobby, to your left is the Rendez-Vous Bar/Café. Perhaps you'd like cognac with a cigar? The café is also suitable for an afternoon cup of tea or a snack. Wahbi apparently was a pool player for he had set aside a space just for that. However, it's now the Japanese Shoya Restaurant decorated with big paper lanterns and fake stone walls, and with a view of the tropical pool. The restaurant specialises in teppan-yaki (where food is cooked right on your table) in addition to the traditional Japanese cuisine including sashimi, tempura and sushi. At the Sheraton Royal Gardens Hotel, they developed this special "all you can eat" offer. In their newsletter they wrote, "treat yourself to a massive platter of top quality sushi as well as a selection of maki rolls plus a bowl of onion soup and fresh green salad. And then do it all over again and again." I say, go for it if you are a die-hard sushi fan. Apparently, at the Sheraton Royal Gardens they regard eating as a lavish experience in its own right. Besides serving Japanese cuisine, Layalina Restaurant, on the left side of the main villa, presents Lebanese dishes and charcoal-grilled specials in a typical Oriental cuisine. The restaurant's terrace, where you can enjoy your meal in the open air on a cool summer night, also overlooks the garden. Fifty years ago the Lebanese restaurant was Wahbi's cinema hall. The Pyramids Café, once the room where the actor displayed his Japanese and Pharaonic collection, is the main restaurant featuring exclusive breakfast, traditional Oriental buffets and a wide range of international specialty dishes and light meals throughout the day. And since we brought the "pyramids" into the discussion here, the hotel's proximity to historic monuments is a bonus. Less than a 15-minute drive to the Pyramids and about the same time to downtown, the hotel is in range of Khan Al-Khalili, Coptic and Islamic monuments in Old Cairo, the Citadel and the Egyptian Museum. Prices: Double rooms on bed and breakfast basis cost LE380 for Egyptians and $65 for foreigners. Day-use rooms that can take up to four persons cost LE300 for both Egyptians and foreigners.
