Tenaya Riverside's Menu Mash-up Might Also be its Most Magnetic

Maadi has a new fine-dining flex, and it comes with a view. Tenaya Riverside is where Egyptian and international cravings collide on the Nile: molokheya, shrimp truffle rolls, baked camembert, and an espresso martini—yes, all on the same table.

The brainchild of Frank Heinen (of Frank & Co frozen-mango-margarita fame), Tenaya feels like the sequel Cairo didn’t know it needed. Sushi and hummus? Chaos. But the kind that just might work.

I pulled up with a posse—I couldn’t trust my taste buds alone for what was about to unfold. We grabbed a Nile-side table under palm trees and dim lights. The vibe: elegant but chill. “We’re not arrogant,” said partner Mostafa Saadany. “We just want you to feel at home.”
Pause. “Just not in flip-flops.”Saadany told me the concept borrows from Zamalek’s late, legendary Sequoia—the riverside restaurant that broke hearts when it closed in 2018. Tenaya, he said, is the refined reboot: sushi, shish tawook, cocktails, and Cairo’s nostalgia, all in one playlist.

Open from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., the place seats 350 and aims to serve 1,000 people a day. Ambitious, sure. But judging by how hard it was to find parking, believable.
We were, naturally, an hour late. Cairo traffic remains undefeated. The sunset had already clocked out, but the Nile breeze was strong enough to redeem it.

Drinks first: a hibiscus mimosa, a Tenaya Bloody Mary, and two Slow Comfortable Screws—the kind of drink name that earns a raised eyebrow and then a second round. The Bloody Mary arrived in a Campbell’s Soup can, which felt both ironic and iconic.Then came the food—waves of it. Saadany steered us through the menu: hummus, baba ganoush, baladi bread, salmon-seabass carpaccio, baked camembert, linguini alfredo, salmon fillet, beef medallion, shish tawook, plus a cameo from the Washoku menu—salmon sashimi and tuna rolls.

That’s when I remembered to mention my allergies—dairy, peanuts, beef. I’m the world’s worst restaurant guest, yet somehow still a food writer. The team didn’t flinch. They added a vegan roll, and chef Ramadan Saadany (no relation) personally came to check in. By the time the mains landed, the table looked like a buffet curated by someone with commitment issues.

The sushi hit first. The salmon sashimi—slicked with pineapple yuzu—was tangy, spicy, sweet, and basically impossible to share. The vegan roll? Shockingly good. Avocado and fried seaweed crumbs—textural chaos in the best way.Then came the Egyptian side of things: creamy hummus, smoky baba ganoush, warm bread that deserved its own PR team. I dunked a piece of salmon fillet—resting on olives and capers—into both dips. Unorthodox, yes. Worth it, absolutely.

“This is the kind of place where you have important conversations,” I said, leaning back with my mimosa. Around us, couples reclined on white couches, friends laughed mid-bite, and the Nile looked smug in the background. This could be the spot.

Dessert was ambitious. We were beyond full, but the apple tarte tatin and mango meringues insisted. My dairy-free mango-and-mint substitute hit just as hard.Opening in June, Saadany admitted, was rough—half the city was at the coast. But the regulars came back. “Ninety percent of the time, people return,” he said. “They walk in like it’s home.”

After one night, I get it. Tenaya isn’t just serving dinner; it’s serving nostalgia with better lighting and actual parking. I’ll be back—with or without the sunset.