Thai me up

Injy El-Kashef discovers a different kettle of fish
Boats, boats, boats, sprouting everywhere on the banks of the Nile. Good or bad? Well there was a time when things slipped into one category or the other with the utmost ease, but being older and wiser now I realise that a world in black and white is a dull one indeed.
The new boat in question is Nile City, moored between Le Pacha 1901 and Al- Saraya. This new offering of the Nile is quite a pleasant affair, housing the usual bouquet of restaurants, but actually looking even better than its older siblings with much wood panelling, more open-air arrangements and lots of plants.
The restaurant we honoured with our visit was the Seafood Market, specialised in turning edible aquatic creatures into Thai dishes. The interior is very welcoming, with some pretty fun chinaware. The waiters are all dressed to look like movie-style sailors with navy trousers and horizontally striped blue and white tops -- no berets, thank heavens. Our waitress had a major attitude problem. She made us feel like she was the headmistress, and we the naughty dumb pupils. The minute she approached the table we knew we would be told off about something or other and began fidgeting in our seats and trying to get whatever we were doing right, worried about being deprived of dessert if we misbehaved.
Once she opened her mouth our frozen faces relaxed under suppressed laughter. I mean, it is difficult to take someone seriously when they offer you loppester for dinner with a straight face. We were invited to stroll down to the fish bar and take our pick. Huge tanks adorn the background of the icy mountains with the dead fish draped nonchalantly all over the place. One question poses itself: why aren't the dead fish alive in the tanks? Wasn't that the original purpose? Never mind. I'm sure they know what they're doing, judging by the taste of the food.
We began with a Seafood Soup, which was extremely tasty with a representative of every creature elbowing its colleagues to make an impression. Next our Clams with Butter and Garlic showed up. Roll up the sleeves, forget about your dignity and just dig in. Amazing little things sitting in their shells; you pick them up, open your mouth and hoover everything in there, shallot slices and all -- but take it easy because it is all too easy to look like a fast-forwarded movie when you over-indulge. What require slow motion are the Grilled Shrimps with Thai Sauce (forget the sauce: not a trace of it). You need to relish every bite like it was your last, feel those meaty juicy chunks melting in your mouth. You are allowed to break the taste with little bursts of Thai Fried Rice with Shrimps. They go fabulously together, divine rice and divine shrimps, hand in hand. Even our Deep Fried Calamari vanished with amazing speed, one following the next, our eyes glistening as we chewed blissfully.
No room for dessert after a fantabulous meal for LE157. We just licked our paws and whiskers and curled up under the armchair.
Seafood Market, Nile City Boat, Gezira.
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