Madinaty’s Alfa Piatto promises great Italian food, but does it deliver?

🍴 Founded in Port Said, Italian restaurant Alfa Piatto has recently made Cairo’s Madinaty its home — and as self-proclaimed enthusiasts of Italian cuisine, we naturally had to put its menu of classics to the test. Clad in rustic motifs with a touch of old European charm, the restaurant was a visual treat, and its packed indoor dining area on a Friday evening suggested a promising meal.

What’s on the menu? The menu was expansive, spanning over 30 pages and offering an overwhelming selection of Italian staples — from breakfast plates, croissants, toasts, and paninis to soups, pasta, pizzas, calzones, and meat, chicken, and seafood main courses. The layout, however, was slightly confusing, with appetizers, salads, and sides oddly tucked away at the very end — an honest but slightly amateurish mistake, we thought.

What we ordered: To make sure we get some greens in before a carb-heavy meal, we started with the Alfa Piatto salad — a mix of grilled chicken, lettuce, and green and red apple slices, topped with a citrusy dressing. The chicken was fresh and well-seasoned, and the dressing helped elevate the generous amount of lettuce. It made for a pleasant starter, though it wasn’t a particularly memorable take on the classic apple-and-chicken salad.

For our mains, we opted for the Tuscan chicken rigatoni, the chicken Milanese, and the Italian beef roll, each generously sized. The chicken Milanese arrived as three pieces of breaded chicken breast topped with parmesan and a side of mushroom-sauce spaghetti — the chicken was crispy but a little lacking in flavor, and the spaghetti was served creamy and fresh, though similarly a little weak flavor-wise.

The beef roll was a meat lover’s dream — tender, packed with flavor, and stuffed with bell peppers and mushrooms. Served alongside penne in a rich red sauce, it was one of the stronger dishes on the table. Ironically, the Tuscan rigatoni was the weakest pasta on the table. It had a noticeable burnt tinge, while the pasta was slightly undercooked. The sauce and the chicken fell flat, lacking in both color and flavor.

The verdict: While the service and atmosphere were appreciated, Alfa Piatto didn’t quite feel like a stand out among Cairo’s crowded Italian dining scene. Perhaps our luck simply missed the mark, and other dishes fare better, especially given the restaurant’s full house, but the meal ultimately felt adequate rather than memorable. We’d recommend sticking to the safer, tried-and-true options — particularly the pizzas, which looked far more promising.

WHERE TO FIND IT- You can find Alfa Piatto at Madinaty’s East Hub and in Tarh Al Bahr, Port Said.

💵 Per person: EGP 400-600

🪑 Outdoor seating: Yes

🍺 Alcohol: No

🦽 Accessibility friendly: Yes