? Couldn’t make it to El Gouna this month? You don’t have to miss out on its soul. Located in the heart of Korba, Heliopolis, right next to the cult classic Tree Trunk, Mawja — brought to life by the same team behind Tree Trunk and Soul — is a recently-opened café and restaurant. Its sole purpose? Bring the seaside to the city.

If we’re talking aesthetics, they’ve dotted their i’s and crossed their t’s. Had it not been for the incessant car honking and crowded sidewalks that have come to be synonymous with the streets of Korba, we would have wholeheartedly believed that we were stepping inside a seaside eatery. White wooden accents, boats hung from the ceiling, and a plethora of seaside imagery — and the affiliated boho eccentricities — all play their part in transforming a space that once housed an Italian restaurant into one where you’d turn around and expect to see Lake Como.

So, they’ve got the aesthetics, but what about everything else? While Mawja boasts a reasonably-packed all-day menu, they’re primarily a bakery-café. If you’re going for a caffeine boost and a hearty snack, you’ll find all your favorite brews and a slew of stuffed croissants, granola bowls, and all sorts of cakes and pastries your nutritionist warns you against. The lunch and dinner menu has everything from salads served in pizza dough bowls — yes, you read that right — to burgers, pastas, pizzas, a curiosity-piquing pizza croissant, and — by our count — four main platters to choose from.

Despite a relatively limited menu, we took our time deciding what to get. Of the four main dishes — salmon teriyaki, chicken teriyaki, chicken caesar schnitzel, and chicken curry — we opted for the caesar schnitzel, paired with a berry mojito, and preceded by a caprese salad. The caprese salad was fresh, and offered what you’d expect of it. Its pizza dough bowl, however, was what caught our attention, disappearing more rapidly than the salad it housed. The schnitzel soon followed, the dish filled to the brim with caesar salad, fries, and a chicken cutlet all drenched with caesar sauce. The portion size was generous, and the dish itself was comforting, yet lacked a certain je-ne-sais-quoi factor.

A turbulent wave to ride. As with any restaurant in its early days, one would expect some turbulence. While Mawja’s visual identity has been perfected, we’d argue that they’ve got a long way to go when it comes to perfecting their experience. For a dining establishment that exists to bring seaside soul to the city, it falls short on account of crammed seating arrangements, limited tabletop space, and lack of accessibility.

That said, we’d say go ahead and grab your kitesurfing kits. While our experience at Mawja was not as ideal as we would have hoped for it to be, we’d still recommend paying the newly minted Korba spot a visit on a calm weekend morning or weekday afternoon for a taste of the Red Sea coast (and calm autumn breeze). We’d suggest avoiding weekends and late nights, as the proverbial shore gets a little stuffy — and no one likes a crowded beach.

WHERE TO FIND IT- You can find Mawja in El Thawra St., Korba, Heliopolis.

? Per person: EGP 500-600

? Outdoor seating: Yes

? Alcohol: No

? Accessibility friendly: No

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