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Dining Out
Fine and funky French food
By Sarah Marquer
Abit of flare and funk has entered Cairo’s high-end dining scene. La Maison Blanche, on the second floor of the First Mall, Giza, is an ode to fine French food with a fun, modern and humorous twist.
La Maison Blanche seems fitting for those who do not take themselves too seriously and are willing to spend a pretty penny on a nice meal. The simple entrance, for example, provokes a laugh thanks to the giant light fixture that stands front and center inside it: a large, dark horse with a lamp protruding from the top of its head. It’s a few more steps to the restaurant’s lounge, complete with a sleek and long fireplace, and comfortable modern beige sofas and chairs adorned with colorful throw pillows. The lounge opens up to a chic bar with a handful of small tables and row of tall chairs along a simple white counter. Behind the bar is a flat screen TV displaying neon-colored artistic images resembling computer screensavers. Trendy lounge music from around the world plays softly but distinctly in the background – enough to fill an empty silence with a distraction but low enough to allow undisturbed conversation.
Next to the bar is the main dining room, where my companion and I were seated at a table for two overlooking the Nile. My chair was in fact not a single stand-alone piece of furniture, but a section of a very comfortable circular sofa around which were other tables and chairs.
Modern art installations and light fixtures abound in the dining room, adding to the restaurant’s playful and busy ambiance. Hand-blown glass bubbles on strings of varying lengths hang playfully like tentacles from a ceiling light fixture. What appears to be a white papier mâché curtain hangs from another wall. Mirrored shelves housing bottles of wine and champagne line one side of the wall, obstructing what could have been a panoramic view of the Nile.
After being seated, we were served our choice of a bread roll or miniature warmed baguette and very salty butter – a delightful French staple. While awaiting hors d’oeuvres, we were served a complimentary amuse-bouches consisting mostly of an incredibly pungent cheese that was too overpowering for our tastes; a smaller serving would have sufficed. It was scooped atop an incredibly thin slice of bread and topped with a black truffle. A dollop of gel-like yoghurt was served in a white spoon next to the bread and cheese combination; it was strange in consistency, smell and flavor, but apparently a trend in fine dining.
Next we each were served a Salade La Maison Blanche (LE 68), a house salad featuring lightly cooked and warmed green asparagus, zucchini, endive, watercress, leeks, carrots and what appeared to be bean sprouts. Our salads were perfectly drizzled with a beetroot balsamic dressing that was slightly sweet yet earthy in flavor. My companion remarked that she hated beets, but the dressing was delicious. The presentation complemented the light-heartedness of the restaurant’s atmosphere and decor; thinly sliced zucchini was wrapped around sprigs of sprout, watercress and endive, almost resembling a maki sushi arrangement. The asparagus and leeks were set upright, as were most of the other vegetables. It almost appeared to be a little forest inside our deep plates.
Our light and healthy but very flavorful starters were soon forgotten when we were served our main courses. I opted for Filet de veau rôti en cocotte, purée de pomme de terre à la truffe noire du Périgord, légumes de saisons et lamelle de truffe noire du Périgord (LE 270) while my companion chose the Filet de boeuf fumé minute, cébette, Bock-choy, pommes de terre confites à l’huile d’olive et jus corsé (LE 240). Translated into English on the menu, the selections were “roasted veal tenderloin in ‘cocotte,’ black truffle Périgord mash potatoes, seasonal vegetables and slice of black Périgord truffle” and “roasted US beef fillet smoked minute, spring onion, bok choy, confit potatoes and its juice,” which resembled something between a cooked potato and french fry in consistency.
Our main courses were savory, packed a flavorful punch and were quite filling, despite the small portion sizes that are typical of French cuisine. I would say that we had only one complaint: my companion specifically requested that her beef dish be cooked medium-well and not have a trace of bloody juice. However, bloody juice ran from her meat.
She also remarked that the beef tasted slightly odd since it was smoked and then cooked. However, despite these hiccups she still enjoyed her dish. The bok choy provided an exotic complement to the hearty beef, which was served in two round pieces, and her potatoes confit were prepared as rings through which garnishes were inserted.
My roasted veal was cooked to perfection, incredibly tender and soft; just the way I like it and exactly as I had ordered. It oozed with strong juices whose flavors were broadened by a generous serving of black truffle slices, which were delicate in form but robust in taste. An equally generous serving of mashed potatoes flavored with and garnished by more of the same black truffles was spread thinly and flat across half my plate alongside the meat. It struck me as a culinary interpretation of modern, geometric, spontaneous art. The hearty, rich taste satisfied my palate and appetite; I would have liked to finish the veal, but was too full.
Arguably the best part of the meal was the dessert. My companion and I agreed upon two: the Tarte crémeuse au chocolat grand cru Guanaja, sauce au caramel, amande et dentelle aux grués (LE 55), a Guanaja creamy chocolate tart with a very light drizzling of caramel beside a small scoop of chocolate sorbet and an ultra-thin, almond and chocolate crisp; and the Tarte au citron, sorbet au yoghourt et dentelle caramélisée (LE 50), a lemon tart with yoghurt sorbet held up on all sides by thin, light and crisp caramel that crackled and popped in our mouths. While I am a chocolate-lover, the lemon tart won the prize for best dessert of the evening. Very tart and not too sweet, the potent lemon dessert was “kicked up a notch” by being prepared as a box rather than your average round tart, like our chocolate dessert. According to the restaurant’s manager, Jeremy Clavel, all ingredients were prepared in an unconventional format, as evidenced by the almost-foamy consistency of the soft lemon tart and sorbet that was scooped inside the box structure created by the caramel walls.
The chocolate dessert was quickly gobbled up by my companion. The sorbet tasted like dark chocolate – a welcome departure from standard milk chocolate – and the chocolate tart was moist and velvety. Despite the richness of the chocolate, it did not overpower.
Along with our check, which made us reach deep into our pockets (LE 1,144.53), we were served a complimentary tray of sweets that – quite frankly – we could not sample as our appetites were completely sated. Other untried menu delights included an extensive tea selection. La Maison Blanche is the exclusive carrier of Mariage Frères, Paris teas in Egypt. The Casablanca, a mix of green tea with Moroccan mint and bergamot-flavored tea (LE 26); the Bourbon, a red tea flavored with Bourbon vanilla (LE 26); or Marco Polo, an interesting concoction consisting of Chinese and Tibetan flowers and fruit (LE 26) would have also been a pleasant way to cap our fun, fine meal.
La Maison Blanche
First Mall, Giza
Tel: 3570-0205/10
Open 1pm to 12:30am; closed Sunday
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