El Fishawy Cafe, in one of the sides of the Khan el Khalili bazaar in the chaotic capital of Egypt, camouflaged among shops selling fabrics, metalwork, and souvenirs is the mythical El Fishawy cafe Cairo, a place that fascinates locals and foreigners alike with its atmosphere and privileged location in the famous bazaar of the capital. If you are looking for a novel and curious place in Cairo, this could be it.
Not in vain, the place that was frequented decades ago by writers and intellectuals has a certainly unique and novel atmosphere.
The decoration of the place, with big mirrors with golden frames and some dusty crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling that surely knew better times, wooden lattices, and rococo moldings contribute to creating the charming aspect of decadence and belonging to another time that is so attractive.
Here Naghib Mahfuz, the Egyptian Nobel Prize winner sat down to write every day seeking inspiration for his plots and characters.
There is a reserved area inside the cafe where a small tribute is paid to him, a corner where it is said he liked to sit, watching the bazaar sway but not being immersed in it where the incessant hustle and bustle and the street vendors would not stop approaching him.
Depending on the time of day we sit, it can be a more or less peaceful or almost overwhelming experience.
During the day it is almost deserted, as Egyptians are nocturnal and foreigners do not usually board the bazaar until they have finished with the daily excursions, but it must be said that when the sun begins to set it becomes crowded with people, both Cairoians and foreigners, and that this continues every day until the early hours of the morning. Everyone wants to sit at one of the tiny round tables made of embossed brass, if possible outdoors, where the tired fans move the air cadenced, and where there is a lot of movement of people.
Who can resist participating in this atmosphere and being temporarily immersed in it? Although it is a narrow and very noisy street, the truth is that one sits down and is in no hurry to get up.
Even when you “suffer” the continuous offers of street vendors or pedigree artists, which I recognize can be very annoying.
Cairoians and foreigners alike enjoy the art of watching people and chatting and laughing while smoking or drinking fragrant mint tea. It’s a great place to get your strength back, (so necessary in this frenetic city that exhausts everyone) immersed in the local culture or just to take a pleasant break if you’re thinking of shopping.
Al-Fishawy Café, or “Al-Fishawy Café” as the Egyptians call it, is the place where the Egyptian writer Naguib Mahfouz wrote his famous trilogy “Between the Two Palaces”, “Qasr Al-Souq” and “Al-Sukkariyya”, but that’s not all, it’s a place that philosophers like Jamal Al-Din Al-Afghani and Sheikh Muhammad Abduh, who are symbols of renewal in Islamic jurisprudence, have visited many times, and here also sat the famous classical singer Umm Kulthum and other figures who made the history of modern Egypt.
The café is more like a three-room house, and the idea is that the visitor feels as if he is in his home and not in a café like the rest of the cafés, and there was a different idea expressed by each room of the café because the first room is called the “Bosphorus” room, and it is lined with wood inlaid with ebony, and contains utensils made of silver, crystal and china, and this room was mainly dedicated to King Farouk and his guests during the month of Ramadan.
It is a fact that in the rhyme the strangest room is the rhyme room, which is closer to a satirical game, where one person asks a question to another person, who responds with the word “listen to me” and the one who asked the question responds with a funny answer, then the second person asks a question and the first responds with the same word “listen” and so the two people continue in a verbal quarrel until one of them is silent.
The goal of this satirical game was to show who is more lighthearted, quick-witted, fluent and sarcastic, and the rhyme game was held every Thursday of Ramadan.
There is no doubt that it is one of the best cafes in the Khan El Khalili area, and certainly if you are visiting Egypt, you must visit the area, otherwise you will enjoy a magical atmosphere in the middle of the bazaars and the market and buy gifts.
