A bridge between Cairo and Europe
I first lived in Egypt in 1994, working as an English teacher — first in the desert, then in Cairo. I went back in 2003 and spent nearly a year on the Red Sea in Dahab, working as a tour guide. That's where Kushary became part of my daily life. In the summer I would eat little else. The heat takes your appetite, but Kushary sits comfortably even then — It's just something that is just so easy to eat anytime.
"Most tourists who visit Egypt never get the opportunity to try Kushary or the other excellent street foods — they're not fancy enough for the hotels to serve - and that's a shame!"
Kushary is not something you crave in the way you might crave something rich or indulgent. It's better than that — it's simply always just right. It is entirely plant-based, not as a statement, but simply because that's what it always was. I like to say that it is "Accidentally Vegan". People come for the flavour. They keep coming back because it's so satisfying!
And if I'm honest, one of the reasons Kairo Kitchen exists is simple: you cannot get Kushary anywhere else in this part of the Netherlands — and I wanted to eat it again. The rest is more ambitious: to build a bridge, to bring not just the food but something of Egyptian culture to Europe — its warmth, its informality, its history. The food is the starting point. The story behind the bowl is the rest of it.