Friday March 29th, 2024
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Tortina's Going All Out And Putting Our Sweet Tooth To A Good Cause

From releasing an insanely Instagram-worthy assortment of unique Ramadan-inspired desserts to stepping up customer service and introducing helpful elves, Tortina is giving plenty of reasons as to why it's set to be the most invited guest to your home this Ramadan...

Staff Writer

Every year there's a Ramadan, and with every Ramadan comes the over-dramatic family debate about what is the best new program, funniest commercial, and most importantly, the tastiest dessert. However, this year is different as tortina is settling all debates and bringing peace to Om El Donia in the form of creative sublime sweets, that will get everyone through the marathon of commercials and programs, only uttering one collective sound: 'mmmWOW!'

Crafting desserts that cause jaw dropping doesn't occur overnight. It takes years of hard-work upping your konafa game, sharpening precision on the finer details that garner Insta-likes, and balancing flavours to silence even the crankiest of cousins. Embarking on this culinary quest in 2006 was Ahmed Abdellatif seeking to bake his wife her favourite strawberry tartlets. Upon accomplishing the mission, Abdellatif developed a passion that couldn't be ignored and by 2009 had developed an assortment of desserts that have become fixtures around Ramadan tables across the land.

Opening their first shop in Tagamoa, tortina set the bar high not looking to create good desserts, but rather the absolute best desserts, constantly tweaking recipes in search of perfection in each of their unique culinary creations. Their attention to details and determination is why their Om Ali, composed of mille feuille, mixed nuts, vanilla crème brulée, and Italian meringue, has been ranked the best Om Ali dessert for four consecutive years. True story.

However, the talk around the Ramadan couch this year isn't about how good the Vodafone commercial is or how someone should set Ramez Galal on fire, but rather which of tortina's Ramadan creations is the best. The so-called kids seem to be of the opinion that the Rawani - cake filled with mango cubes and fresh cream - is the real hero, while the old generation, that insist we watch Adel Emam, prefer the timeless dishes like the Panna Cotta with baked konafa slathered with fresh cream and mango, bala7 el sham with eshta, kunafa date tart, traditional Palestinian kunafa with Nabulsi cheese, and, of course, platters of classic Oriental treats.

Different generations always have differing opinions, but tortina manages to keep everyone happy by taking delicious risks in modernizing the classics. “Nowadays, based on a family business concept, tortina pastries represent the new turn in modern dessert. We have been studying and experimenting on the new dessert tastes, working with a group of chefs who are passionate about their work and devote themselves to transforming prime ingredients into sublime creations. Our treats blow a breath of modernity over time-honoured desserts from éclairs, mille feuille, saint honore and cerise sur le gateaux, to our creative innovations such as Mars cheesecake, Twix tart, and charisma chocolate cake, which have become classics,’’ says Ahmed AbdelLatif.

Proving the point is the seriously insane flavour combinations that result from the rigorous R&D, ultimately creating deliciously mind-boggling cakes like the  Mont Blanc – a twist on the French classic with layers of crispy kunafa, meringue cookies, fresh cream, and crème de Marron; the Alaska Bombe Crispy – kunafa layers with raspberry yoghurt ice cream and topped with Italian meringue; and finally Tiramisu Kunafa with mascarpone cheese filling, whipped cream and kunafa layers soaked with espresso syrup. 

Almost as equally important as taste to any baking empire is customer service, which is why tortina is offering two new services for loyal customers: Spot Delivery and Elves. The first will enable customers to reserve a sweet treat ahead of time, call minutes before arrival to the store - and voila! - a tortina staff member will be waiting for you outside with your goodies in hand. No queue and no imminent fear of your favourite dessert running out. 

As for Elves, they now provide a little helper to order your pastries; all you have to do is download ‘Elves – Your Personal Little Helper’ app on your iPhone, visit the Facebook page and select ‘message’, or do it through the website. Through these three different means, you have immediate and guaranteed access to chat with an Elf whilst your data and your trend history are saved with the Elves. They know what you searched and what you ordered every time – not a guilt trip, just a matter of dessert convenience.

It is this constant mindset of finding ways to improve that has helped tortina expand to 12 branches in Cairo and beyond. Proud of their success and looking to give back this Ramadan, tortina is joining forces with ‘Ahl Masr’ charity foundation to donate 10 per cent of all sales, as well as money raised from donations boxes located in all store locations. Combining the fact that they have an amazing assortment of new mouthwatering desserts, super convenient customer service, and are giving back some of your money to those who need it most, explains why tortina will likely show up to Egyptian Ramadan tables more often than that cousin who works in social media does. 

Drool over their desserts on Facebook and Instagram or call them directly on one of the numbers below.

Heliopolis (105 El Marghany St.): 01275155499 / 0222904165
Zamalek (12 Hassan Sabry St.): 01203022406 / 0227358067 / 0227357744
6th October City (Arkan Mall): 01125695633
Mohandiseen (24 Abd El Monem Ryad St.): 01028063330
Katameya Heights: 01028063338
El Tagamoo El Khames (Inside Metro Market): 012880 04179
El Maadi (El Laselky): 01288004179
Nasr City (Genena Mall): 01283400131
Rehab City: 011417127 01