Cairo Cafe

It’s just depressing. This place use to be 10 stars out of five. When the ownership changed, the place spiraled completely downhill. This place, by the way, is no longer owned or operated by Egyptians – the owners are Ethiopian. Cairo Café used to be a restaurant with beyond-​excellent food and a place where the customer got a real taste of another culture. The best buffet dining (and Middle Eastern food) in town is gone. You can still order off of the menu, but it isn’t the same. The last time I went in there, I found the buffet was no longer in existence – I walked right out the door and never returned. The place is now, more or less, a nightclub. Sure, the hookah bar is comfortable and is a cool place to hang out, but this does not make up for the destruction of a truly great place.

I used to frequent the Cairo frequently. I was a total regular! The buffet was good and the staff were friendly. Since the owner sold the establishment, it’s gone downhill, I do not recommend the Cairo anymore. Prices are too high, food standard is really low, and the hookah tobacco is low grade.

This is going to be a very schizo review. Apologies in advance.
A couple or so Christmases ago, the family and I were looking for something, anything, to be open to eat at. We don’t do the holiday thing so we usually get our Chinese on, but they’d closed the one we were going to early. I don’t remember how we tripped along this place, but we went in and found a buffet that would make people cry. Super yummy food, and it was some of the best hummus I’ve ever eaten. Flash forward to a few weeks ago, and I was roaming during the day, trying to eat somewhere I hadn’t been in a while and stopped in here. I walk in and there’s a group of guys at the hookah, staring at me. I stopped at the hostess station, stood there for a while, and went to go sit on the couch while waiting. I sat for around 15 minutes, while the guys kept looking, and when one of the guys went into the kitchen and came back out (and still, no one spoke to me) I finally got up and left. I dunno if it was because it was the ‘special’ hookah, or maybe I looked nutty, always a possibility, but it was unnerving. I don’t foresee myself going back anytime soon, and that’s too bad, because I truly liked their food here.

It felt weird walking in to this place with no one else eating, just a few dudes in the back getting their hookah on. I was looking forward to a falafel sandwich which is listed on the menu on their website, but they said it was strictly buffet at the time of our visit. Oh well, I thought, and proceeded to plow through a few plates of Middle Eastern/​Mediterranean grub. First of all, turn up the heat under those buffet trays, please! Most of the dishes were lukewarm. Regardless, the food was decent. I liked pretty much everything on the buffet especially the chicken dish, the green beans, and the meatballs. It just sucked that it seemed like these were likely leftovers from the day prior. I bet this stuff is amazing straight out of the kitchen. The hummus and baba ganoush were really good. I could eat that stuff all day. The buffet comes with a soft drink, but it comes in a can. That fine, its just a bit weird drinking a soda out of a can in a restaurant. The service was fine. The place is a bit dark and dingy. It kind of feels like an old basement with the stained ceiling tiles and old looking couches. Not a deal breaker, though, and one must consider that this place becomes some sort of night club on weekend evening apparently. You will not find me here rocking out to middle eastern techno on a Friday night, but I wouldn’t mind coming back to sample some items from the menu.

Decided to stop in and use a Groupon that I bought about a month ago. Before going I read the reviews and was bracing myself for an underwhelming experience. I was hoping to order something off a menu since I read so many bad things about the buffet. Unfortunately, the buffet was the only option.
I have to say that it wasn’t as bad as I expected. No gyro meat, but they did have some spicy meatballs that were really good as well as some well seasoned chicken cooked with onions and peppers. The buffet had several options; soup, rice, potatoes, green beans, lentils, chicken, lamb, meatballs, and some dish that was some type of macaroni casserole wrapped in foil. We had plenty of pita served at the table and the buffet had an assortment of condiments including hummus and baba ganoush. I have to second everyone’s comments about the lack of freshness on the buffet. Our food wasn’t very hot and we were the only people in the place eating, so it’s hard to say how long it had been sitting there. The waitress let us know that the night time is the best time to visit. She said they have a latin night and on Saturdays they have belly dancers and serve sandwiches. Perhaps we will go back, but don’t hold me to it.

Geez, what happened? I hope I just caught them on an off day.
I recently stopped by for a lunch on a weekday. I was the only customer there.
Selection of buffet items wasn’t as large/​varied as I remembered.
I was likely the first lunch customer of the day, since the food was in the steam trays, but the serving utensils hadn’t been put out yet. But, almost all the food tasted like it was many hours old, perhaps even left over from the previous evening.
The magic was definitely gone.
No other customers came in while I was there.
Lighting was too dark. I could barely see my way back to the men’s room (which needs some remodeling.)
I hope the dinner buffet is better.

I feel I should like this place more. I love Mediterranean food. The place is in the proper spot for great food. They have a lunch buffet. All the stars are aligned but the quality of the food didn’t do it for me. The only thing that was good were the deserts and I can’t justify going back to pay $ 10 for something sweet.
I’ve only been once so it could’ve just been an off day but, with my list of favorite spots to go and other spots to try, a bad first impression can kill a place for me.
Maybe if I try the place again I will go for dinner but I think it would take some convincing from someone.

Great time tonight with at least 11 people in our party great food and service.

Know how the first time you eat at a new restaurant you’re so excited to go back? We’ve been back several times since that first exciting night of straying a few doors down from the planned meal at the Saigon and the Cairo Café buffet delivered interesting food at a reasonable price. Tonight was a bit of a disappointment though. The hummus and baba gannouj as well as the soups are great starters but the rest of the buffet items lacked variety. Previous visits had plenty of vegetarian items on the buffet but tonight it was pretty standard grilled meats type of fare. It seems like there may be a change of ownership? No towels in the men’s restroom either, but I’ve seen worse at less interesting joints.

Cairo Café isn’t bad, and I wouldn’t mind ending up there again. I went there on a weekday during prime lunch hour, and there were no other customers.
The server was very nice and really good about explaining what everything was. I was a little concerned that the heat on every single buffet tray was turned off, and she turned them on when we came in. It makes me wonder how long the food was sitting there unheated before we got there. This seems like it might be a violation of health code, but at the same time, it didn’t stop me from eating the food. Aside from that really major concern, the food wasn’t bad.
The baba ghanoush stood out as the best I’ve had anywhere, and I’m not usually a fan of baba ghanoush. The Turkish coffee was fantastic, and I would gladly return just for that. The desserts were rather disappointing, and the bread pudding appeared to be made of hamburger buns. Aside from that, nothing was particularly memorable, and I’m not sure it’s worth putting on my buffet pants for this.
The waitress mentioned that there’s a much better selection on Friday nights and Saturdays, so I would recommend going then and definitely finishing your meal with a Turkish coffee.

After reading the reviews, we were all pretty excited to visit Cairo Café. Most of the dishes did not disappoint and had more flavor and spice than places like Mediterrano Café, the selection was about a quarter of the size. Also, after reading one of the reviews, I called ahead to ask if they would be having gyro meat for the lunch buffet (which they said yes). When we arrived, instead of gyro meat, they had cubed roast lamb that was pretty tough. This is did not disappoint me as much as my less experimental companions. The green beans, pressed lamb/​beef skewers were wonderful — the baked chicken was above average. The pita and hummus were fresh and flavorful as well.
I loved the hookah interior décor and the service was prompt.

This was my 2^nd excursion into Mediterranean food and i was amazed at how good it was especially compared to what i had tried in San Diego. my wife was taking belly dancing lessons and her teacher dances here from time to time. She is awesome. but I was a bit reluctant to go based upon the décor and location. But Man Was it Great. I liked everything about the place. cheap and good. great service and what an experience. This is a place to go for the adventurous open minded diner.

Decent (good) Middle Eastern restaurant in the middle of Indy, huh? Yes. But go now, because I don’t know how long it can last with such slow business. My party was the only one the entire time we were there, on a beautiful Thursday dinnertime…
The wonderful buffet, also available at dinner, offers a ton of choices. If you’re willing to try everything, you’ll need to take several trips. Make sure to try the lentil soup, roast chicken, and gyros. As others have noted, it would be nice if there were more readily available water… the waitstaff pretty much leave you alone as much as possible, though they are friendly when you can catch their attention.

Hands-​down the BEST Middle Eastern restaurant in the city. If you go at lunch, you can try the fresh, amply stocked buffet, with everything from baba ghanouge (roasted eggplant purée with tahini), to lentil soup, to various rice dishes with nuts and meat. And a lot more.
The gyro meat is flavored to perfection, thought it’s not always on the buffet. Call ahead. And the pita is properly moist, not dry like at many places. Be prepared to pay $ 10 or $ 11 at lunch, though.
Try some Egyptian tea for something different. Some nights feature belly dancers.
In the back there’s a grocery store, where you can stock up on your Middle Eastern specialty groceries.

Where else in Indy can you grab a plate full of yummy Mediterranean fare, then go in back and pull up a hookah? What’s more, when you partake of said hookah, where else can you feel more like a guest in Jeannie’s bottle?
Jeannie-​aficianados may well remember feeling at home in the erstwhile El Morocco on 86^th street, but since that has gone away a very lovely stand-​in is the Cairo Café.
About a year ago, the back room was actually a mini grocery store selling Turkish Delight, hummus, olives and such, but the owners had a more lavish plan in mind. What smart folks. Replete with white lights and floor pillows the color of persimmons and pomegranates, the place couldn’t be more welcoming.
I really go there for the buffet, though, whose selection is almost overwhelming. The green beans lubi — green beans languishing in a bath of fiery tomato sauce — couldn’t be more perfect for a palate in need of a pick me up, and the hummus is heavy on the tahini, making it much more nutty than most I’ve tried. The salad is simplistic, though gorgeous, with lots of onions, tomatoes, parsley, garlic and lemon juice punctuated by the tiniest bit of olive oil. The kofte kabobs are small, fat and crunchy, just how I like ‘em, and they deliver with a rich, smoky flavor.
Every time I’m in Indy, I make a wish to eat here. And wouldn’t you know, it always comes true!