Al-Ahram Weekly | Living

		23 -29 May 2002 Issue No.587 Living	Current issue Previous issue Site map
Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875		Recommend this page

Phone home
Injy El-Kashef counts her blessings

Muqattam residents rejoice and cheer: a new pizza outlet is here!
It is not that new actually, that was another charming little exaggeration of mine; it is renovated. Pizzaland has been around for at least four years, from the time that I graced the hills with my residence. I had tried it back then, placing a home delivery order that took forever to arrive to us without, eventually, making any favourable impression. We had tried to visit it at a later stage, searching for the address, going around all the tiny streets as well as the larger ones, around and around in circles until we reached square A again. Pizzaland seemed to have vanished.
Last week, however, as I was allowing my son to use the public telephone to call his best friend on the plane flying overhead during our little stroll, I saw the Pizzaland delivery boy on his motorbike. All ground-to-air communications were terminated in an emergency halt as we rushed to him: "Mr Pizzaland... wait!" He kindly handed me the new menu and explained that they had recently re-opened after a much-needed face-lift and were ready to fulfil all our wishes. All? I doubted that very much but thanked him anyway, clutching the menu close to my heart as all Muqattamers will probably understand -- we just have too few of those up there.
A couple of days later, sitting in front of my PC alone in my palace and having no inclination to raise a finger in the kitchen, I called Pizzaland and placed a diverse order, knowing it would make the subject of this review. Many new sections had been added with more sophisticated plates, "nouvelle cuisine" dishes, appetisers, salads, and a huge selection of sandwiches with exciting fillings. The delivery boy had obviously not lied -- and my food came in a flash, fresh and hot.
I had chosen the Italian Hot Dog, unaware of what it could be, but drawn by its multi-cultural aspect. It turned out to be a delicious sandwich which will do very well in our carbohydrate- cherishing society, as it includes French fries with the bread and sausage, all soaked in incredible amounts of ketchup. A few hours later I attacked the Pizza Super Supreme which, as its name would have it, consisted in all imaginable toppings atop a fresh and sweetish thin, soft base. Nothing I could hold against it, except perhaps the cheese which was definitely not mozzarella but a kind that dries like gypsum when cold.
As it was a long night for me, I also had the chance to try the Umm Ali, which was very sweet, very good, though totally devoid of nuts but full of dry coconut, and with just the right amount of milk. It lacked that half-burnt crust characteristic of the classic Umm Ali, which must be placed in the oven for that effect, but was nonetheless a perfectly enjoyable dessert.
This very filling and tasty fast food meal, delivered to my door, cost me a mere LE25 (including the extra pound delivery charge). Had I ordered for 10 more pounds they would have given me a free family-sized bottle of any fizzy drink. Pity that they only had Pepsi, however, which is not in line with my boycott strategy.
Muqattam residents, take heart: we are slowly but surely getting there.
Pizzaland, Road 17, Bldg 6, behind Al-Sharq Lel-Ta'min Club, Muqattam
Tel 505 2600

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