Restaurant review: Candy for cupid Overnight French toast and red velvet cake? Gamal Nkrumah loses himself in Valentine observance The cherries resembled Early Girl tomatoes tossed with a pungent shaved cheese and a piquant confit garlic that my companion thought nauseatingly unromantic. The cream was reminiscent of gruyére. So we swapped dishes as a closer examination of the menu proved my choice to be more masculine and hers the more feminine. The set menu at any rate consisted of gusty plates and complex combinations. The good news was that the reversal of options was ordered in a sequence dictated by tradition. At first glance, Aqua Luce seems like an unlikely venue for Saint Valentine's Day dinner with your paramour. Its interior is one of the most simple and yet stylish I have come across in a plush hotel. The restaurant is a large spare space in the lobby of the Fairmont Towers, Heliopolis. And, its composition is illusory in its simplicity with everything shoved to the corners as if by an aquatic centrifugal force. At the far left-hand corner, I sat with my date. I sipped my soupe du jour. Seafood and lobster bisque soup, with saffron cappuccino foam, brought tears of joy that my companion mistook for commitment, or a pronounced storming of passion. Her choice appeared to me like a little heap of russet autumn leaves -- an assemblage of golden colours speckled with crimson. Pan-seared scallops and goose liver -- toasted buts, seasonal salad drizzled with a curiously unconvincing vanilla dressing. I tried hard to focus on the harmony of flavours. The sweet and sour symphony of flavours seemed appropriate enough for the occasion. Worried that we might find many of the Egyptian reds a little overblown for Valentine, we stuck to the house sparkling wine. Strawberry sorbet. Grilled beef Medallion Morilles sauce suitably accompanied by Chateau potatoes and Ratatouille vegetables might not be one of the best plates of food I can remember on a Valentine date, but it was memorable all the same. Potatoes vary a great deal in their starch content, and these were blanched and sautéed in butter and were presented golden brown and teasingly malleable without being in the least mushy. The potatoes traditionally cut in the shape of Corsican olives were a particular favourite of Napoleon Bonaparte. Garnished with finely chopped parsley, the potatoes were crisp, light and delicious. The Chateau potatoes were served with a Morel Mushroom sauce that ought to have been accompanied by veal, rather than beef. The traditional Medallion de Veau au Morilles is a hearty meal perfect for Valentine. However, the medium rare beef was equally exquisite, I hasten to add. The second choice of set menu for Valentine was grilled jumbo prawns, which has a mouthwateringly melting, moist and scrumptiously seasoned flesh. Picasso rice, a paella of sorts, I presume, and seasonal buttered green beans made for perfect condiments to the prawns. Macaroon cake with raspberry jelly sauce and crystalised rose petals proved to be irresistible. The fruity raspberry jelly had none of the frivolity of the jellies of children's parties. This was the pulsating stuff of adolescent puppy love. Indeed, the raspberry burlée was not in the least puerile. The burlée, an innovative variation on the Cambridge burnt Trinity cream, would have met the approval of Pope Gelasius who in 496 officially ordained Valentine as the Love Day. The raspberry burlée, with the bright crimson drops of pure fruit braised in their own rich pectin, was poured at the very last moment, perfectly preserving the crunch of the Macaroon cake. And, when my companion flew out of Cairo International Airport, I reflected on what an extraordinary dinner it had been, with none of the quintessence of Cupid's cooking. Aqua Luce Fairmont Towers, Heliopolis, Cairo Tel: 2696 0126 Valentine dinner per person: LE350 including a glass of house sparkling wine
