Slow Downtown: Organic Food The Egyptian Way

Eating healthy and going out doesn't have to be an ‘either or’ choice, neither does eating healthy and saving a few pounds a month. The days when organic food was an unreachable, imported-only kind of thing are over, as three entities are coming together to bring the slow food trend right to the core of Downtown Cairo.    

Hip Downtown restaurant Eish & Malh has partnered with Slow Food Cairo and Nawaya to set up Slow Downtown: Farm To Fork Menu & Market, an event geared towards raising awareness on the origins of the food we eat while providing a delicious choice for the demanding palate.

Kicking off on April 1^st, the event is the third of its kind and will continue to be held on the first Friday of every month, with the aim of bringing tasty, clean, and fair food to Downtown Cairo through its farm to fork menu. Aside from the market of local producers, the ever-creative chefs at Eish & Malh will prepare special dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner at Slow Downtown that feature the local and seasonal foods also available at the market. 

Their most promising bet is a series of homemade artisan gelatos, such as gooseberry (harankish) using dried gooseberries from Minnie's Dried Fruits & Vegetables, salted caramel prepared with Siwa salt from Ma7ali Grocery & Deli, and sage with Sinai sage from Habiba Organic Farm (HOF).

The organic trend is rapidly taking on a life of its own in Egypt, as several locally-grown shops have sprung up in the past couple of years. The upcoming Slow Downtown market, however, disconnects the often-embedded link between the healthy and the taseteless, as the restaurant’s menu has carefully sourced the ingredients to demonstrate possible recipes and craft mouthwatering meals with the ingredients onsite. The Slow Downtown market will be held from 11 AM to 6 PM, while the Farm to Fork menu will be available from 8 AM.

For information about the event, visit Eish & Malh's Facebook page.