No one doubts that taste in food is subjective, so each Egyptian and traveler could create their own list of the best restaurants in Egypt. However, in this post, we gather the proposals of the main culinary experts which, despite focusing on high-end signature cuisine, can provide a good sample of what’s cooking in the country’s kitchens… although it may not be within everyone’s budget.
The Best Restaurants According to Major Guides
There’s no doubt that the French Michelin Guide is a reference when it comes to culinary criticism. But it’s also true that its listing doesn’t delve deep enough into non-Western countries. In fact, it doesn’t award any Michelin Stars (its quality distinction) to restaurants located in Egypt, and only two establishments are highlighted for their Egyptian cuisine, based in the United States, as it’s common to find Egyptian restaurants abroad.
However, the World “’s 50 Best Restaurants list, compiled by the American WilliamReed, is more illustrative. While there’s no Egyptian representative in that select group, there is one in the regional listing: the MENA”’s 50 Best Restaurants, with MENA standing for Middle East North Africa.
List of the Best Restaurants in Egypt
Taking into account that list of 50 restaurants in the Middle East and North Africa, we count six representatives from the country, as of early 2025, which places Egypt at the forefront of the region in terms of haute cuisine, despite the list being dominated by establishments based in Dubai.
In any case, the first Egyptian restaurant appears closing the Top-5: in fifth place, we find Khufu’s, whose name refers to one of the most important pharaohs of Ancient Egypt, also known in English as Cheops and promoter of the Great Pyramid of Giza. The critics of this guide describe its cuisine as a reinterpretation of Egyptian classics with views of the pyramids
, as it is indeed located in the city of Giza and very close to the famous funerary monuments. Leading the team is Chef Mustafa Seif.
In 12th place, we find Kazoku, a restaurant whose name reveals the style of the menu, which in the words of the guide is “Japanese food by Reif Othman in a glamorous setting”. That is, the mentioned chef, originally from Singapore and with restaurants in different countries, has opened in the new administrative city of New Cairo this establishment dedicated to Far Eastern cuisine.
And in 15th place, another restaurant of non-Egyptian tradition, equally advised by Reif Othman: in this case, Sachi Giza, where Western flavors are mixed in a minimalist design restaurant that, according to critics, “leaves no one indifferent”.
But we have to go down to 24th place to find another restaurant with Egyptian flavors: Zooba, located in the elegant neighborhood of Zamalek, in Cairo, which has managed to bring the country’s street food to an extremely refined level, thanks to Chef Moustafa Elrefaey.
Completing the presence of Egyptian restaurants in the list are Sachi Cairo, by Ayman Baky (33rd place), with a greater emphasis on local cuisine than its name might suggest; and Izakaya (38th place), another “Japanese” restaurant that makes its way into the city of Cairo, although in this case through Nikkei cuisine, which blends Peruvian and Japanese traditions, under the charge of Chef Martín Rodríguez.
So if you needed advice and suggestions to discover what are, theoretically, the best restaurants in Egypt, these six suggestions can lead you to experience a unique gastronomic experience, which we can help you organize.
