Restaurant review: Don't miss the moment The goal-scoring statistics, the spectacular Nile vistas and the night life -- it all adds up to a midsummer's dream, muses Gamal Nkrumah The crystalline lights playing on the river give a pewter sheen to everything in sight. Under the vast Nilotic sky in the sweltering dusk of a Cairene summer, but the Moon Deck of the Blue Nile moored ship is as good a place as any to watch the World Cup finals. No less than 12 of Cairo's landmark five- star hotels are in full view. This is stern stuff. Legend unravels as the World Cup tournament comes to a close. The Teutonic teams have the upper hand but the Latins, Europeans and Americans, come close to clinching the World Cup. Gamesmanship aside, my sons and I wanted to watch the match. There has been plenty of talk about how Ghana lost against Uruguay. To jog your memory, there were no memorable moments as far as we were concerned. So where do we watch this match? Moon Deck, I presume. My son Youssef, however, has no particular passion for soccer. He prefers handball. Karim, however, is besotted with the Beautiful Game. He pins his hopes on Spanish striker David Villa, the 2010 World Cup's leading scorer, to lead Spain to victory. I am not so sure. I suspect a victory parade for Germany and an empty-handed trudge back to Madrid for the Spaniards. The phrase is resonant. Moon Deck? It is noon and there is no moon. It is sweltering hot outside and we decide to lunch somewhere cool and air-conditioned. You'll hear about that experience next week. At any rate, we also resolve to have a light supper on the Moon Deck. My son Karim has a lot on his plate. The food is not quite our focus tonight. The chicken livers are succulent and juicy, but none of the boys is interested in offal of any kind. The sambousak stuffed with a garlicky cheese isn't as tasteful as I had hoped. Enhanced by the muted addition of garlic, basil and chili pepper, the baba ghanoug -- aubergine-based dip -- is delicious and goes down well with the boys. As we talk, Karim has his eye on the game. "I like football, but I far prefer boxing," he says moving restlessly around the sofa. "Uruguayans are losers. And, the Dutch will surely win the match," he declares in a confident, breezy voice. "Cheats, cheats," he scowls. He is a very emotional adolescent who reacts to results. And what about the prospects of a surprise Uruguayan triumph on this Tuesday evening? He meets the challenge with a touch of bravado. The commentator is obviously biased against the South American team, much to the delight of Karim. None is quite as clean-cut as the well-groomed adolescent before me and he is articulate as the smooth talker beside him. So what about the gastronomic delights of the Moon Deck? This clever juxtaposition of North African, Asian, and Egyptian cuisine sounds exotic, but do not have great expectations about the comestibles. Over the past few months, their mother miraculously lost much of her authority over the dinner menu and that is when the boys and I took to eating out a lot. How did that happen? We became less inclined to remember that cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil sprinkled on tomatoes facilitates the biological process whereby the lycopene contained in the tomatoes more accessible to our vital bodily organs. I picked a sambousak oozing with volatile oils devoid of nutritional value. Karim was quick to pronounce his verdict. It was described to me as the best he had been served before. Mind you, one cannot count on the food on the Moon Deck. My sons and I loved the easygoing-ness of the deck with the panoramic views and the enchanting ambiance, but I do not recommend the bites on offer. Scientific-sounding terms like "cholesterol-laden" and "saturated fat" spring to mind. The Asian influences are tempered by the Western touches and the Levantine sensations which spruce up Egyptian specialties. The common denominator, tough, is grease. Everything is a tad too oily. It is far better to concentrate on the Beautiful Game, or the panoramic spectacle if you are not into soccer. Moon Deck Blue Nile Boat 9 Saray Al-Gezira Street Zamalek, Cairo Tel: 2735 3114
