I've been itching to try this spot for months. The only other Egyptian place I can recall going to is the Kebab Cafe in Astoria Queens (Bourdain favorite). But, this is in a high traffic area that is far away from where I live and it is only open at night (they said the do a brunch on Sat and Sun). I finally made it so last Thursday. It is next to Vicenzo's in the shadow of that giant swing ride. Which brings to mind a story of how my cousin (psychopath by today's measures) and I (only midly psychopathic) made my middle brother puke up two orders of mussels on a smaller sized swing carnival ride when we were pre-teens. It was summer. That explains the mussels. The action involved twisting the chair and chain as far as you could counter clock wise and then releasing it. This way there were two centifugal forces working at once. There was one karmic element to the story. In addition to an apron of orange on my brother's white shirt and pants, the puree also ended all over my cousin who was sitting behind him and evidently unaware of the laws of force and motion. I'll add that this ride (the one on I Drive) and the whole area around it was packed with people. On a Thursday night. And almost every place (except Ox Eye) had weathered the virus and was open. A restaurant/bar/live music place called Ole Red even opened up diagnol to Ox Eye. The parking lots were almost full. This must be the center of action in Orlando now. A wonder what free parking does.
The place looks pretty good. There is a kitchen (semi-open) in the rear, a private room in the right rear, a bar area in the right front and the rest of the space is the main dining area. The have a patio too. People were smoking hookahs inside and out. I didn't smell it. High ceilings. They decortaed the modern space with photos of who I surmise are Eygptian celebrities. Mostly older ones. a painting or two. They have many different modern chandeliers hanging about. Some are illuminated. It has a modern Arab feel. The crowd seemed to be all Arab. Modern Arab too. There was one table in which the wife seemed Caucasian. But with headscarf. There were families and singles (even women). All ages. I'd say it fits 100 inside and 40 outside. The menu had about 10 main dishes and some apps. An Alexandria style liver looked interesting, but, I went with Molokhia with half chicken for $20 (check the menu for price discrepancies. I thought it said $16.99). The molokhia was described to me as a puree of herbs they put in chicken stock to make a sauce/soup. It was ok. A little bland. It came in a bowl. The flavor was better on the chicken. It must have been rubbed with a lemon yogurt rub. It was grilled. A little dry in places. Crisp skin. Covered with peppers and onions. Mostly good. It came with some rice that seemed more like barley or bown rice in texture. You were supposed to put the sauce on it. It was better plain. Service was good. Most of the menu was under $20. Not as interesting as Persian cuisne, but, more so than most Mediterranean menus. I wouldn't say no if invited back. I even didn't mind the Arab Enrique Iglesias music playing in the background. The experience had the effect of removing you from the swamps of Central Florida to "a whole new world" (without the traffic noise and pollution). It gets the same consideration as World of Magic. Where else are you going to get the chance to sample this type of experience? This is a less staid experience than WOM btw. Egypt versus Kingdom of Saud, I guess.
*I saw a Get-N-MessyBBQ sign on central I Drive. Not sure if they have two locations now. It looked like they were serving in front of a space. Someone also opened a new sushi place and a Turkish one (Turkuaz) in the strip mall on I Drive and Kirkman. And an Indian place near Kirkman on I Drive. That Jerusalem place is definetly closed. The hotels there look almost finished.
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