Restaurant review: Heart in Hanoi Gamal Nkrumah, on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, scents Spanish, Vietnamese and Indonesian aromas in Indigo which is among Cairo's slickest restaurants Snake, soft-shell turtle and dog are nowhere to be found on Indigo's menu, yet this outstanding restaurant is the only eatery in Cairo where one can sample Vietnamese cuisine, arguably among Asia's finest. Newly opened Indigo is perhaps the slickest of eateries in all of Egypt. The ambiance itself is electrifying. Imagine a devilish potpourri of pared down Buddhist spirituality and puffed up Asian artistic finery against a backdrop of midnight black and bloodstone crimson. And, the very notion of Vietnam deserves a rethink in the Arab world. Ticking off Dien Bien Phu doesn't quite do Vietnam justice. History, though, hangs around almost every Vietnamese dish, and geography is never far off. I looked in vain for the outrageous. Nevertheless, it was not the authenticity of the cuisine that appealed to me so much as a glimpse of the lives of atypical Cairo's socialites. Indigo, after all, is a first rate restaurant in the heart of First Mall. Sample Vietnamese delicacies and escape the Valentine snoggers. Soon after our inauspicious arrival, the walls at Indigo looked like they were beginning to groan under the weight of fantastic Asiatic plaques and plates. Facing me was a crenellated stone creature, some colossal crocodile of sorts. I cast my eyes around the indescribably awe inspiring restaurant. Asian motifs spice up this flamboyant tavern. Swinging chairs, something of a wake-up call, welcome you as you pass by the well-stocked bar near the entrance of Indigo. There is obviously a lot of cash sloshing about in this tastefully proper hideaway. Watch yourself chugging cocktails from an uncanny angle as you settle into plump leather chairs in indigo and vermilion. I was in an extraordinary trance. I licked my lips and felt daring in the extreme. Canadian lobster with lemongrass, tamarind, ginger and jasmine rice? That mouthwatering delight graced the "Indonesian" menu. Shrimp wanton soup with shitake mushroom or green curry soup with chicken and angel hair noodle? Then there was the Vietnamese crab and asparagus soup, lemongrass, chilies, coriander and lime. I watched my ravishing companion savouring with relish her roast salmon, daubed in tamarind sauce and stir-fried exotic Vietnamese vegetables. The "Spanish" Dover sole meunière, saffron condiment proved to be most agreeable. Much is expected of the Vietnamese food by the few who take an interest in it in Egypt. And, Indigo did not disappoint. It's a completely different world. Next to us were three well- healed ladies conferring over paella royal with mussels, scallops, prawn, calamari and cuttlefish. With the global economic meltdown, many once flourishing fishing fleets could be grounded in dock in 2009. I wondered whether these extravagant seafood dishes would contribute to a revival of the trade. Soaring fuel costs could make fishing unprofitable this year. Business is already in decline due to dwindling fish stocks. But, this is obviously of no concern to Cairene socialites dining at the flashiest First Mall eatery. Indigo is Indonesian as much as it is Vietnamese. And, Indonesian cuisine is even more diversified than that of Vietnam. The cuisine of Sumatra, the largest of the archipelago's 6,000 islands, is heavily influenced by Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine. The most popular dishes of Indonesia's eastern islands, on the other hand, are reminiscent of Polynesian and Melanesian cuisine. Java, Indonesia's most densely populated island with two-thirds of the country's 300 million people, is inspired by the Chinese with bakmi (noodles) and bakso (meat balls), but it was the Mie Goreng fried iridescent pink noodles and satay chicken on lemon grass that caught my eye on Indigo's "Indonesian" menu. Indeed, even though I was doggedly on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, I could not help but realise that the "Sukarno" factor was far more dominant as far as Indigo was concerned. Desserts, too, had a decidedly mixed Asiatic flavour. The ginger flavoured chocolate spring rolls with raspberry sherbet and vanilla sauce was quite simply sinful. The passion fruit agar agar, definitively Indonesian, was as much a breathtaking sight as a taste bud delight -- passion fruit spaghetti, topped with strawberry and drenched in coconut sherbet. Indigo First Mall 35 Giza Street Tel: 3571 7803 Dinner for two: LE750
