Koshary, 'Foul' (stew of cooked fava beans), and Ta’ameya (Egyptian Falafel) are celebrated Egyptian dishes that succeeded in stealing the hearts of foreign diplomats. In addition, high-position diplomats and ambassadors stand and eat nearby folk foul carts.
"Foul" is a stew of cooked fava beans served with vegetable oil, cumin, and optionally with chopped parsley, garlic, onion, lemon juice, chili pepper and other vegetable, herb and spice ingredients. It is notably a staple food in Egypt.
Also, foreign visitors sometimes prefer to visit 'Koshary' restaurants and enjoy the traditional tastes, spices and have rice pudding in the heart of the local Egyptian district.
Koshary Abu Tarek and Mahrous’s 'Foul' Cart have become essential destinations for various states’ ambassadors such as Belgium, Serbia, Australia, Afghanistan, and the UK.
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The ambassador takes a picture of the Koshary dish[/caption]
Furthermore, the former UK ambassador in Cairo organized a banquet for his colleagues and the office employees in the embassy by moving a real traditional foul cart at the embassy’s headquarter.
This event made the footage of the 'Foul' cart at the UK embassy an unforgettable shot.
Surprisingly, 2020 was full of warm moments of ambassadors while having 'Koshary' meals.
The Way to Win Ambassador’s Heart:
The Egyptian folk saying expresses that to earn the heart of your man, give him delicious food. This saying can be applied to the ambassadors who fall in love with the Egyptian food: 'foul' sandwiches, and 'Koshary' meals, and Egypt as well. Furthermore, Egyptian food has a long story with foreign ambassadors; therefore, it reflects the importance of Egyptian food as one of Egypt’s soft power.
The scene of the Belgian Ambassador while having 'Koshary' meal for the first time in his life is breathtaking and unforgettable. He stared amazingly at the waiter while adding the various ingredients to the dish, in addition to his experience of having the meal in the restaurant.
https://youtu.be/yt9yug_jNyM
The smell of spices and sauces made his mouth to salivate over them. He asked for an extra dish “Kimala” and took photos of the dish to invite his wife to have the same experience.
Surely, he tasted the taste of the Egyptian food and he completed his experience to the last after ordering a rice pudding. Moreover, he expressed his pleasure with the experience.
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Serbian Ambassador Yugoslav Vukadinovic takes rice with milk[/caption]
He added that he would invite his wife to have the same experience with him.
Furthermore, the Serbian Ambassador had a nice experience with 'Koshary' also as he toured Champollion Road and gazed at the workers and small shops to reach the restaurant. He aimed to get closer to the real traditional life of the Egyptians.
Strong Stomach is a Requirement :
One of the requirements that diplomats need is to have a strong stomach as Christopher Meyer, the former UK Ambassador to Washington described "that the diplomat should have good thinking, a strong mind, a strong stomach, a warm smile, and a cold eye."
He added that the strong stomach helps the diplomats and ambassadors to adapt to their hosting countries' traditional food.
The 'foul' cart succeeded in crossing the limits after the former UK Ambassador in Cairo John Casson. Casson broke the whole physical and diplomatic limits alongside breaking the harsh English protocols after tasting 'foul' sandwiches with pickles and 'Koshary' meals.
The smell of the well-spiced 'foul' and golden fried Ta’ameya of the famous Mahrous Foul Cart attracted Casson and drove him to make a casual group visit to the cart and have a traditional Egyptian meal regardless of the restrictions of formality and diplomacy.
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John Casson with a bean sandwich[/caption]
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John Casson loves Fesikh[/caption]
Also, Casson was one of the best ambassadors who adapted to the Egyptian society and its traditional seasonal food such as Egyptian salted herrings “Ringah,” and Egyptian 'Fatteh' which he posted photos of while cooking during fest celebrations. He also posted various photos of his Egyptian food meals.
Contributed by Rana Atef
Watch the Video:
https://youtu.be/yt9yug_jNyM
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