Cairo Restaurant & Cafe - Anaheim Rating: (5/5)…read more I ordered from Cairo Restaurant & Cafe through Uber Eats, and this ended up being one of the most meaningful food experiences I've had in a long time. For context, I come from Egyptian heritage. I'm first-generation American, and both of my parents grew up in Cairo. The dishes I ordered -- Hawashy as an appetizer and Makaroni Bechamel (Bashmil) casserole -- are foods I grew up with. The last time I had this exact meal cooked for me by my mother was several years ago, so placing this order felt like a gamble, especially with the restaurant being all the way in Anaheim while I live in Irvine. That gamble paid off immediately. From the very first bite, the food tasted unmistakably authentic. The hawashy was deeply seasoned, rich, and comforting -- exactly how it's supposed to be, not watered down or adjusted for convenience. The makaroni bechamel was the real emotional gut punch in the best way possible. Creamy, savory, perfectly spiced, and layered the way it's done back home. It tasted like something made with care, patience, and respect for the dish. I'm not exaggerating when I say this meal hit me hard. After one bite, I literally called the restaurant just to thank them. I asked to speak to the manager and told him what this meal meant to me -- how it tasted like something my own mother would make, how it brought back memories I didn't realize I'd been missing. That call wasn't planned. It was instinctive. Huge shout-out to Zayne, the manager, who was incredibly kind and generous on the phone. He even sent along kunafa for dessert, which was the perfect ending to the meal -- warm, sweet, and beautifully made. Beyond the food itself, the packaging deserves real praise. Everything arrived hot, which is not easy, especially for a casserole like makaroni bechamel. Once that dish cools too much, it loses something important. This didn't. It arrived as if it had just come out of the oven, which speaks volumes about the care taken in preparing orders for delivery. This is not a 5-star review because of nostalgia or heritage alone. It's a 5-star review because the food was genuinely outstanding -- rich, decadent, comforting, and made the right way. It is very hard for me to say that something compares to my mother's cooking, but this truly came close. I cannot wait to come in person in the next few weeks. Cairo Restaurant & Cafe didn't just serve food -- they delivered a memory.

Came in last night for a quick bite. Lots of people smoking hookah on the patio but I sat inside…read more Wasn't super hungry so I just got the lentil soup and hawawshy, which is an Egyptian street food where they stuff pita bread with ground beef and spices. Both dishes were good but not amazing. Another customer came in and I overheard him say, "this seems more like a hookah spot than a food spot." I'd have to agree with him

Absolutely amazing the meat was so incredibly juicy and delicious and the food portions were big…read moreand the service was on another level would recommend this is the only Arab restaurant that actually tastes authentic would recommend a 10/10 experience

My first time at this restaurant, a friend of mine recommended to me…read moreWhen i got liver and tarp sandwiches The food was really good and fresh I think it's a family business I'll be going there again for sure. Highly recommended.

Kareem's Mediterranean Restaurant is one of the best places to eat in Orange County. The food is…read morealways delicious, and the service is excellent. They have had the same owner and chef for many years, which really shows in the quality and consistency of the food. Everything is fresh, flavorful, and very tasty. Highly recommended

The best food ever!! The meat very fresh and tasty…read more Good service Fresh delicious veggies. Ambient cozy and warm like a family! recommend this place !! Not expensive.

This place used to be really good but lately their hookah is not the same and prices has gone up so…read moremuch And they charge for paying with credit card Ambiance is cool in the outdoor area in the back

As somebody born in Iraq and raised around real Arabic food in Dearborn, Michigan. Yes you guys met…read morea real Arab! this place was honestly offensive. I know exactly what authentic Middle Eastern food tastes like, smells like, and looks like. This was not it. This felt like recycled cafeteria food dressed up for people who have never had the real thing. For almost $65, I genuinely felt robbed. Everything tasted old, aged, reheated, and low effort. Nothing had freshness, brightness, or quality behind it. Real hummus is supposed to be balanced between chickpeas, tahini, lemon, garlic, and olive oil. Even food writers and traditional recipes describe hummus as a smooth blend where the chickpeas are the foundation and the tahini supports the flavor -- not the other way around. Apparently this restaurant never got that memo because I'm pretty sure they accidentally served me a bowl of straight tahini and forgot the hummus entirely. I thought chickpeas were one of the cheapest ingredients on earth, but somehow they managed to make hummus without any actual chickpea flavor. It was bitter, muddy, heavy, and completely drowned in sesame paste. Whoever made it must've been in a personal blood feud with olive oil and lemon juice too. The fattoush was an absolute disaster. Real fattoush is supposed to have freshness, herbs, vegetables, citrus, and crispy pita with texture and balance. What I got was a depressing garden salad tossed in cheap dressing with pita chips fried so hard and soaked in old oil that they were basically edible roofing shingles. I love pita chips, but these things were NOT brittle like glass. I felt like I was eating hardened gummy bread. I genuinely thought I was going to crack a tooth. They tasted like stale fried scraps reheated over and over again until all flavor and dignity left them. The tabouli somehow had even less life in it. No brightness. No freshness. No clean parsley flavor. It tasted like it was prepared months ago and forgotten in a refrigerator. Even the pita bread was stale. STALE. That alone tells me everything I need to know about the kitchen. Any real Middle Eastern restaurant knows fresh bread is sacred. " How dare you people!" Then to top it all off, the attitude was horrible. Cold, dismissive service from people acting annoyed that customers even exist. The overall cleanliness and presentation of the restaurant honestly made the entire experience worse. Besides the young girl working she's the one star for my review. California desperately needs to stop letting places like this claim they serve "authentic" middle eastern food. This is the kind of place that survives off hype, location, and customers who simply do not know better. If you grew up eating real Iraqi, Lebanese, Syrian, or Dearborn-style food, you will immediately know something is wrong here. I left overcharged, disappointed, and honestly feeling sick afterward. One of the worst Mediterranean food experiences I've ever had. كشخص وُلد في العراق وكبر على الأكل العربي الحقيقي في ميشيغان وديربورن، فهذه التجربة كانت إهانة بكل معنى الكلمة. أنا أعرف تمامًا كيف يجب أن يكون طعم الأكل العربي الأصيل وشكله ورائحته، وهذا المكان لا يمتّ له بأي صلة. شعرت وكأنهم يقدمون أكلًا مُعاد تدويره ومُجهزًا للناس الذين لم يجرّبوا الأكل الحقيقي في حياتهم. دفعت تقريبًا 65 دولارًا، وبصراحة شعرت أني انسرقت. كل شيء كان بطعم قديم، وكأنه محضّر من أيام أو معاد تسخينه عشر مرات. لا يوجد أي انتعاش أو جودة أو اهتمام بالتفاصيل. الحمص كان كارثة. بصراحة كنت أعتقد أن الحمص من أرخص المكونات الموجودة على وجه الأرض، لكن يبدو أن المطعم خلط طلبي وقرر أن يعطيني طحينة صافية وينسى الحمص بالكامل. الطعم كان مُرًّا وثقيلًا ومليئًا بالطحينة بشكل مقزز، بدون أي توازن أو نكهة حمص حقيقية. واضح أن الشخص الذي حضّره عنده مشكلة شخصية مع الحمص وزيت الزيتون والليمون. أما الفتوش، فكان فضيحة. الفتوش الحقيقي يجب أن يكون منعشًا ومليئًا بالنكهات والخبز المقرمش الطازج، لكن ما وصلني كان مجرد سلطة عادية مع قطع خبز مقلية زيادة عن اللزوم ومشبعة بزيت قديم لدرجة أنها كانت قاسية مثل الزجاج. حرفيًا حسّيت أني سأكسر سنًا وأنا آكلها. التبولة لم يكن فيها أي حياة. لا انتعاش، لا ليمون، لا نكهة بقدونس نظيفة. طعمها وكأنها منسية في الثلاجة من أمس. وحتى الخبز كان يابسًا. وليس "ناشف قليلًا"، بل قديم ويابس فعلًا. أي مطعم عربي حقيقي يعرف أن الخبز الطازج شيء أساسي ومقدّس. وفوق كل هذا، الخدمة كانت سيئة جدًا. تعامل بارد ومستفز وكأنهم متضايقون من وجود الزبائن أصلًا. ونظافة المكان وطريقة التقديم لم تساعد إطلاقًا. كاليفورنيا فعلًا لازم تتوقف عن السماح لأماكن كهذه أن تدّعي أنها تقدم أكلًا عربيًا "أصيلًا". هذا النوع من المطاعم يعيش فقط على الاسم والشكل والناس الذين لا يعرفون الفرق بين الأكل الحقيقي والتقليد الرخيص. خرجت من المكان نادمًا، منزعجًا، ومعدتي تؤلمني من سوء الجودة. واحدة من أسوأ تجارب

Oh my gosh! This place is amazing!…read more I came across this place on a random Yelp search while in the area, and man am I thankful that it did! This place doesn't have 4.9 stars @ ~300 reviews for no reason, trust me, they've earned it! :) I've had Egyptian cuisine before, but I've not had feteer until this evening. Calling it an Egyptian pizza is the easiest way to describe it, but I don't feel that does it proper justice. The various cheeses make for a complex flavor that matches well with the meat and creates a wonderful consistency with the double sided dough. It may appear small in size, but it's so full of cheesy, meaty, veggie, doughy goodness that one of these can easily feed two hungry adults no problem. On the owners recommendation we ordered a Halal Beef Soujok Kiri, and my son wanted to try the Beef Shawarma. He offered to add spice, so I had him add a bit to the Soujok and it really added as wonderful depth of flavor to the mix. Both were incredibly tasty though, and my family loved them! I also ordered a mixed "sweet pie" that had a row of Nutella, Lotus (Biscoff Cookie), and Sugar and Milk mix which allowed us to try all three flavors. My fam really loved the Nutella, but I enjoyed the Lotus more overall. Regardless, be sure to make room for dessert when you come here, because it's delicious! We also got a side of the spicy vegetables, which was a bit much for the kids, but my wife and I really enjoyed it. The owner also threw in a few Egyptian sodas - my kids loved the Orange flavored ones, but I recommend the Apple flavor as it's malted, which really gives it a unique flavor! :) The service was amazing! It was the owner holding the place down when we got there, but he was friendly, patient, and more than happy to explain everything and guide us to something that everyone was sure to enjoy! The ambiance is that of a small, family owned eatery. Some seating in the front with some music playing, and a small window into the back where you can see the magic happening as he whips up his wonderful creations! This place is top-shelf for sure! Even if you've never experienced Egyptian food before, I assure you this is one of the better ways to try it! The prices are reasonable, the owner is a great guy, and the food is amazing! I promise you won't be let down! We'll most certainly be returning, and I hope to see you there! :)

Came here after all the hype on instagram! Worth the hype…read more The Egyptian pizza is so unique- super cheesy and the flavors are unlike any traditional Italian pizza! You walk up and order...but...you don't pay at this point.... you pay afterwards. The drinks are all in a refrigerator that you help yourself to. The guy behind the counter was super friendly. (Tough to understand...but he's great!) I was with 2 friends and unfortunately we ordered 2 different pizzas and got waaaay too much. (One would have been plenty) I think this is where the miscommunication came from. Buuuuut...we did get to try two different kinds. The BBQ chicken and the Beef Soujok Kiri. The jury was split...the Beef Soujok Kiri was really flavorful with veggies and olives...the chicken was a bit more mellow, but dipped in both the ranch and siracha (be suuuuuure to request both) made me give it my vote.... this leveled up the chicken pizza!!! Ambience isn't anything special...and you eat off of paper plates and disposable silverware. Nothing fancy, but it doesn't take away from this real treat!

The food is good specially hawashi , chicken, kofta. So happy i gave this place a try. Definitely…read morerecommend.

Ordered the Vegan Egyptian pie~ Vegan sausage & Vegan beef. It was absolutely DELICIOUS!!…read more A lot of times, we taste food with ingredients (no matter what), but there is this thing called "heart", which makes all the difference. These Egyptian pies are made with heart. You can taste the love that goes into their food. It is something unseen, and I rarely describe food this way...I am also of a different culture, but with every bite, it has something unseen by the human eyes, but something you feel when eating. The food is so AMAZING, It plays on your heart. Just the way it is made, the top ingredients and done with the love of their culture makes you fall in love with their food. Thank you Staff & owners for always making us feel welcomed!

This place is so authentic. Great baked good. Great Zatar…read more Everything is delicious!

Stopped by to meet up with a friend for breakfast. What a gem! We got a delicious meal to share for…read more3 for about 35 dollars, and everything tastes great. My tops were the Zaatar and the cheese bread. I imagine it's hard to go wrong, however. Some of the dishes were a bit spicy for me, but it was nothing a splash of the provided lemon slice and the great pickles couldnt cut through. Overall, loved it and would come back. Ah and we ended our meal with some incredibly fresh tasting baklava for about a dollar a piece. No skimping on nuts either! Loved this and cant wait to come back!

I like to try new coffee shops on Sundays and unexpectedly found Knafeh Cafe today. I didn't get to…read morestep inside because I had my dog with me, but my partner went in to order my Dubai strawberry latte (half sweet) and picked out a few pastries. The young man who took his order was very polite and made great recommendations based on his favorite flavors. Everything was delicious: texture was amazing, VERY fragrant, and not too sweet. Although, It might've been too sweet if I didn't order the drink half sweet. I'm not sure how much everything cost because i didn't pay for it but i assume it's expensive as they use real, quality ingredients. My latte tastes pricey, probably $8 My photos don't do the items justice. I'm most excited to come back for another latte and their rice pudding (it tastes like roses!).

my boyfriend was homesick and craving knafeh, and this place was so good it made him emotional :')…read more we each had a crispy knafeh slice, and they kindly offered to heat it up for us. it tasted exactly like what you'd get in the middle east, and my boyfriend said "that was copy paste of what i get back home" -- the highest compliment! we initially came to try the same qatayef, but they were sold out, so we'll definitely be back. can't wait to try more of the menu!

MAKANI GRILL is such a gem! This Egyptian inspired food truck and catering business has been…read moreserving the Hollywood community since June, 2023. The food is absolutely delicious and the customer service is second to none. I highly recommend their Shawarma plates (beef, chicken, or mixed). It comes with fresh basmati rice, lemon garlic hummus, and a traditional Egyptian salad (called salata Masriya)! MAKANI GRILL is vegetarian and vegan friendly. The meat is 100% Halal Premium cuts, with no GMO and no MSG. By the way, every single dish is prepared to order. Joanna, Bishoy (aka. Bizzy), and Driss are very kind, hospitable, generous and professional. I highly recommend this family owned business to anyone looking for authentic and fresh Egyptian cuisine at very affordable prices.

From the owner: Come have a taste of authentic Egyptian food. We are serving our customers halal meats, and have…read morevegan options as well. Great food right of the grill to your plate.

People wait in line here for a reason when other lounges are empty. The atmosphere, the lively…read morecrowd, the solid hookah options, and all the food made outside with you all contribute to a good night out. When it's packed, it's PACKED so don't expect the fastest service, but everyone is so friendly. Weeknights the wait isn't as bad, but weekends be prepared to wait unless you come early. The level of smoke does get intense if you're a casual hookah goer (like myself) so if it feels like too much on a weekend, go on a weekday.

Came here for a friends birthday. We entered through the front where we never got acknowledged…read more When the rest of our group arrived we went back to the patio/seating where we seated ourselves. It was around 6:45 on a Saturday and there were only about 2-3 other groups. To order you have to scan the QR code at your table. Its convenient because everyone can just order and pay on their own tab. The food, hookah, and cards are all ordered through this. Everything came out lightening fast. I got the chicken plate with white meat and the cinnamon tea, less sweet. The plate had plenty of food and was pretty good but not anything special. The tea was absolutely delish and I would highly recommend it. Randomly the chips off of my friends plate were one of my favorite things. I dipped it in the hummus and it was a great flavor combo. They have plenty of hookah flavors and by 8:00 pm the place was packed and you could not see through the smoke lol. Service is a little spotty if you need help. There were some helpful servers and some that were lacking. The place has 2-3 too many tables, you have to walk through a maze to try to exit because it is so cramped. The bathrooms were absolutely disgusting. Most of our group ended up just holding our pee in! Overall the place had good vibes but there are some holes in the service. Also, Parking gets extremely crowded at night.