The Best Egyptian Street Food in Cairo: A Local's Guide

Cairo is one of the greatest street food cities on Earth. As a local Cairo food tour guide, I take travelers to stalls and hole-in-the-wall spots that most tourists never find. Here are the Egyptian street foods you absolutely must try when you visit Cairo.

1. Koshary — Egypt's National Street Food

Koshary is a carb-lover's dream: rice, macaroni, lentils, chickpeas, crispy fried onions, tangy tomato sauce and a garlic-vinegar dressing. It's cheap, filling, and 100% Egyptian. Every Cairo neighborhood has its favorite Koshary shop, and locals argue about which is best.

2. Ful Medames — The Breakfast of Cairo

Slow-cooked fava beans mashed with olive oil, cumin, lemon and garlic. Egyptians eat Ful every single morning with fresh baladi bread. On my Cairo food tours we visit the spots where taxi drivers and workers line up at sunrise.

3. Ta'meya — Egyptian Falafel

Unlike Levantine falafel made from chickpeas, Egyptian Ta'meya is made from fava beans. It's greener inside, herbier, and impossibly fluffy when fried fresh. Eat it stuffed in warm bread with tahini and pickles.

4. Hawawshi — Cairo's Spiced Meat Pie

Baladi bread stuffed with spiced minced beef, onions, peppers and chilies, then baked or grilled until crispy. Hawawshi is a Cairo street food invented in the city — you'll find the best versions in the old neighborhoods.

5. Shawarma, Fiteer, and More

From flaky Egyptian Fiteer (a layered pastry, sweet or savory) to slow-roasted Shawarma carved off the spit, Cairo's street food scene runs late into the night. If you want to eat the way locals do, book a Cairo food tour with a local guide who knows exactly which cart is worth the stop.

Ready to taste Cairo?

Every dish on this list is on one of my Cairo food tours. Come hungry.