Restaurant review: Roman dream A half-hearted attempt to recreate Italy in a Cairene mall interests Gamal Nkrumah Sooner or later it had to happen: the opening of yet another Italian restaurant in Cairo. And, they crop up in the most unusual and unlikely of places. The Italians have arrived at these shores many times, and each time they leave an indelible imprint on the country. The new curiosity is that Italian restaurants are mushrooming all over the place. They are telling us how to live -- or at least, they are telling us how and what to eat. The Italians invented the concept of La Dolce Vita, the glamorous life. The decadence of the Roman Empire and the different aspects of Roman culture were, ultimately, imbued by the Egyptians, in a curious process that correlated men and women from a wide spectrum of Italian society into the radically different setting of traditional Egyptian ways. New foods and methods of preparing food were introduced, and to this day, many foodstuffs in Egypt have Italian names -- gambari (prawns), calamari (squid) and the dried, salted and spiced meat pasterami ( basterma as it is called in Egypt) to name but a few. At one point in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many of Cairo and Alexandria's finest butchers were actually Italian, and hence the cuts and types of meat invariably have as their origin Italian names, and so are rendered in the colloquial Arabic dialect as filletto, costaleta and talabianco. The Romans, having invaded Egypt, got rid of the last Ptolemaic Pharaoh of Egypt, Cleopatra VII, who drank her poisonous potion. She married the dashing Mark Anthony who harboured ambitions of being Roman emperor. Sadly, the last queen of Egypt backed the wrong horse. The unfortunate couple committed suicide in the wake of the Battle of Actium. In 30 BC, Emperor Augustus became the first Roman ruler of Egypt. Like the other Roman leaders, he didn't live in Egypt -- most never even set foot in the country. Yet, many of their countrymen did. And, the country's new overlords left the religious set-up of Egypt virtually intact. The Roman rulers of the country built temples and kept the all-powerful Egyptian clergy intact. Italians and Egyptians mingled their blood, beliefs and speech before the dawn of history. However, the Egyptians never quite took to the Italian fondness of olive oil. Egyptians, traditionally prefer their ghee, or samna balady, and Grazie is a restaurant that mixes the two traditions in a remarkably unique fashion. The Italians have always come in waves. Wave after wave of them. Some Alexandrian districts and parts of Boulaq and Downtown Cairo were virtually Italian neighbourhoods retaining the vibrancy and colour of Italian cities. The problem of eating in a restaurant like Grazie is that you are reminded of the refreshing ponentino, the balmy sea breezes blowing from the Mediterranean Sea, and you realise what a polluted city Cairo is. The air is still and percolates in a most stifling manner. Worse, we are not able to build a proper picture or feel of Rome or Florence. These are cities that cannot be recreated in Cairo. First, the ambiance is entirely different and second the food is not quite up to par with authentic Italian cuisine. Grazie is one of those warm and joyful eateries tucked away in a corner of the rather oppressive Ramses Hilton mall. The mall is full of distractions, you can stroll about and discover its temptations at your leisure. Grazie, though, is one of those small intimate eateries where you can have a leisurely mouthwatering range of anti-pasti, the delectable range of traditional Italian appetisers. Then there is the risotto, pasta and pizza -- the latter is more American, though, than Italian. The main dishes are such a treat, too. Indeed, the Osso Buco Grazie, or veal shank, served with mashed potatoes is an absolute must. There are seafood, meat and chicken main dishes galore. The cannelloni is absolutely divine, a taste of heaven. The homemade ravioli stuffed with ricotta and spinach is simply out of this world. Grazie Second Floor, Ramses Hilton Annex Downtown Cairo Tel: 02 579 3636 Dinner for two: LE200
