Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

"El-Bostan" Cafe Hidden behind Naguib Mahfouz


Mon 03 Jun 2019 | 07:39 AM
Nour El-Hoda Fouad

The Coffee Shop "Riche" is considered to be the most famous Coffee Shop for Egyptian and Arab intellectuals. Not only because of the constant visits by Arts greats Amal Dunkol and Naguib Mahfouz. Another reason rich is so iconic is because it is located next to Coffee Shop El-Bostan.

[caption id="attachment_54590" align="alignright" width="300"]Riche cafe Riche cafe[/caption]

While Coffee Shops in Egyptian society occupy a special position as a place of gathering Egyptians with distinct social and cultural backgrounds, El-Bostan type became known which featured intellectuals. They go to this distinct coffee shop located Bostan Street in Bab El Lok Neighborhood.

 

The coffee shop, which is frequently visited by the most important names in the field of literature and culture, brings intellectuals in Egypt and throughout the world to experience the warmth of the local coffee in an Egyptian neighborhood while drinking tea, shisha, table games and dominoes, all while bringing up various topics in society including politics, religion and culture.

It is only rivaled by El-Feshawi Coffee Shop in El-Hussein has an ancient taste, but El-Bostan has more of cultural taste. The experience of "Zahrat el-Bustan" spread in the streets of the old downtown area as tens of people that living area, day and night, do not sleep at night.

[caption id="attachment_54585" align="alignright" width="300"]Ramadan nights in El-Bustan Ramadan nights in El-Bustan[/caption]

Sherif Nasr, Director of Zahret El-Bostan stated that the Coffee Shop opened in 1965 and was owned by Haj Abdul Latif Ahmed and then his son Haj Mohammed Abdul Latif, who lives to this day.

Following the revolution of January, the shop became more famous because it was located in the heart of the events next to Tahrir Square. Many pioneers of the the revolution in Egypt, as well as writers and artists such as poet Ahmed Fouad Najm, Mekawi Saeed and Ibrahim Abdul Majid, all enjoyed their time at the shop, Especially on Friday the weekly gathering of Egypt's intellectual for long time .

Even some of the movies were filmed in the iconic coffee shop the most recently a series starring the famous actor Yasmin Abdul Aziz and the last scene of the series of "Lams Aktaf" being currently being broadcast in Ramadan.

[caption id="attachment_54593" align="alignleft" width="300"]Gravity Wall Street of Zahrat el-Bustan Gravity Wall Street of Zahrat el-Bustan[/caption]

Nasr added that the Coffee shop is known to gathers many intellectuals in addition to several foreign tourists and intellectuals .

Nasr announced that "Most of the employees here have been working for many years, some of them have been working for 10 years and 15 years". "Some of them have been working here for 30 years, and with the expansion of the coffee shop's popularity and reputation year after year.

More than 25 workers barely cover the needs of customers and their increasing numbers. However, the coffee shop has faced many crises since the January revolution. It was closed countless times.

[caption id="attachment_54587" align="alignright" width="300"] the front of cafe the front of cafe[/caption]

The authorities stated that the closing is due to the violations, despite the fact that there were no violations. It is perhaps the taxes on the café.

The most recent close down came when deputy Cairo security head ordered its closure, But for the coffee shop's fame and the rapid transfer of news to the media and websites, he knew the importance and prestige of the shop and ordered officials to reopen it after six hours of closure.