Restaurant review: Zo and Zen Halfway down Zamalek's main thoroughfare is a polished rare Asian precious stone, pronounces Gamal Nkrumah It's a blistering dusty day and the tail end of Al-Khamasin is blowing fine sand down from the Sahara. Queen Tiye complains of a tummy upset and I wonder if curries "From the Heart of Asia", the Zo Restaurant trademark, is appropriate considering her condition. She assures me gingerly that ginger grated into any sauce or curry is a magical potion for gastronomical relief. Zo Restaurant is not, though, your standard ubiquitous Chinese chop bar. It purports to be Pan-Asiatic. Zo serves Chinese, Indonesian, Korean and Thai dishes. The diner will not come across a thousand-year-old ceramic dish dating back to China's Song dynasty. This, after all, is a restaurant, not a museum. Kum Zo Korean-style stir-fried potatoes with spring onions and Indonesian satay with beef morsels on skewers served with chili peanut sauce, perhaps. The modest space, upstairs and downstairs, means that you are jammed close to other customers, diners who are passionate about Asian delicacies. Queen Tiye wasn't quite pleased with horror scenes of the Anamorphic widescreen she conjured up with everyone elongated and squashed together like some monstrous projection of oneself in a fun house mirror. I had to concede that Queen Tiye's contempt of the clash of kaleidoscopic colours was somewhat disorienting at first glance. It was not, after all, merely her hauteur and contempt for this kind of kitsch. All of this would all be quirky ironic if it weren't so cleverly presented as Asiatic and atmospheric. "It is all about the food," I ventured sheepishly. And, the gaudy décor adds to the authentic Asian touch. "I'll have the coconut chicken soup, please," Queen Tiye sighed when her exaggerated complaint of stomach trouble fell through. "Oh fancy that, the aromatic combination of ginger, garlic, basil, lemongrass and coconut milk sounds enticing enough for me," the Platinum Blonde barged in. "Well precisely, I ordered it for medicinal purposes," Queen Tiye snapped brusquely. "I'll go for the Thai clear soup with shrimps, mushrooms and lemongrass, then," quivered the Platinum Blonde after an intensive study of the extensive menu. "I'll skip soup altogether and try the Chinese prawn dim sum wrapped and steamed in rice paper," I whisper wistfully. The shrimp red curry with pineapple was out of the question as far as Queen Tiye was concerned. However, I had it all the same. The Platinum Blonde's Thai beef massaman curry appeared equally appetising. She was still glaring admiringly at the Chinese porcelain soup spoons. "No you can't eat those with these spoons," Queen Tiye crackled and cackled like a crazed hyena, and gestured wildly at the horrified Platinum Blonde. "Use the chopsticks. I'll show you how," she purrs in a rather reconciliatory mood. But the Platinum Blonde was oblivious to Queen Tiye's overtures. She was engrossed with her seafood glass noodle soup with shrimps, squid and black mushrooms. Not that the Platinum Blonde's glass noodles were entirely to be sniffed at. The Chinese lanterns were glistening ferociously like hurricane lamps. Everyone all of a sudden is in high spirits. Queen Tiye opted for one of the eponymous offerings at Zo. The dishes themselves have an eclectic quality like the Orient itself. Noodles are a symbol of longevity in Chinese culture, Queen Tiye stipulates. For dessert, Queen Tiye ordered fried bananas with vanilla ice cream, which is always a mistake in my book. I opted for sweet potatoes with cinnamon and coconut milk. It is easy to imagine all those aromatic flavours penetrating deep into the beloved warmly-spiced root crop. Brazenly located in the heart of Zamalek, halfway between the two ends of 26 July Street, Zo Restaurant is easily spotted. The garish violet façade lends a surrealist twist to the Zo. The desired effect is a surrealist aura of Asia. Even so, Zo is unlikely to win any beauty contest for the prettiest Chinese restaurant in Cairo. And if you have a penchant for Japanese dishes try Makani next door. There is little chance of sampling a traditional shabu-shabu dinner in either eatery either. But if you are looking for an evening out with a bit of Asian grit and edge, you know where to book. Zo Asian Restaurant Zamalek, Cairo
