Abou Tarek

Abou Tarek is the name most Cairenes mention first when asked where to eat koshari, the dish of rice, lentils, macaroni and chickpeas topped with spiced tomato sauce and crisp fried onions. Its founder, Youssef Zaky, known as Abou Tarek, started selling koshari from a cart in Downtown Cairo in 1963. The business grew into the large restaurant on Champollion Street, where the original cart still stands outside a building of four storeys.

The menu is short because the restaurant does one thing. You choose a portion size, and the koshari arrives quickly in a metal bowl, ready to be seasoned at the table with extra tomato sauce, a fiery chilli sauce and a garlic and vinegar dressing called da'a. Adding a little of each is the usual approach. Rice pudding and other simple desserts are available, and many diners start with crisp fried bread as a snack.

Abou Tarek suits anyone on a budget, vegetarians and travellers keen to eat as Cairenes do. A meal here is filling, quick and inexpensive, so it is a practical lunch stop between museums and Downtown sights. It is busy throughout the day and into the night, but tables turn over fast. Families are common, and the upper floors are usually calmer than the ground floor.

Service is brisk: order at the counter or with a waiter, eat and go. No booking is needed and there is no dress code. Prices are low, and it is sensible to carry cash in small notes. Allow 20 to 30 minutes. Because koshari is entirely plant-based, it is one of the easiest local meals for vegetarians and vegans, though check about the cooking oil if that matters to you.

The restaurant is on Champollion Street in Downtown, a short walk from Tahrir Square and the Egyptian Museum, and close to Sadat and Nasser metro stations. Downtown's historic cafés, including Café Riche and Groppi on Talaat Harb Street, are a few minutes away for tea or a pastry afterwards. In the evenings, the streets around the restaurant stay lively with shoppers and small food stalls. Look out for the old cart by the entrance, which is a reminder of how the business began, and for the kunafa and juice sellers nearby if you still have room for something sweet.