Egyptian Ahwa: How To Order At An Egyptian Cafe

The Egyptian ahwa, or outdoor cafe, is a fundamental part of Egyptian culture.

Sitting outdoors, talking to your friends, and doing it all with a delicious coffee in your hand (and often while you watch football in Egyptian Arabic).

What more could you want?

Ahwa is both the word for coffee and the place that you drink it. These places are pretty much everywhere in Egypt, and today we’re showing you how to order at one.

Today, Cleo Lingo will be explaining….how to order at an Egyptian ahwa.

Egyptian Ahwa Example Phrases

As usual, we will start with the most important phrases to use at an Egyptian ahwa.

Then we’ll break them down into more specific groups.

Good evening. : Masa2 elkheer.

.مساء الخير

Peace be upon you. : Salamo 3alekom.

.سلام عليكم

Pretty normal greetings here.

Keep in mind that most people go to ahwas during the night time. However, nothing should stop you from going during the afternoon. Or even the morning.

Indeed, this might be the most relaxing part of your day. Ahwas are open pretty much all the time, and with a busy city like Cairo, there will always be somebody to take your order.

Check out this article on why people prefer an ahwa over an indoor cafe.

Sitting Down at an Egyptian Ahwa

Here are some things the guy might say after you sit down.

Go ahead, sir/ma’am. : etfadal ya basha/etfadali.

.اتفضل يا باشا/ اتفضلي

Do you want something? : 3ayz haga?

عايز حاجة؟

What do you drink (what do you want to drink)? : Teshrab eh?

تشرب ايه؟

Remember, if you are female, these verbs will have the ي (“ee”) at the end.

We are two/three/four. : ehna etnen/talta/arba3a.

.احنا اتنين/تلاتة/اربعة

If you need more advice on numbers, check out our post on how to count in Egyptian Arabic.

Just sit wherever you want. While it’s quite normal for an Egyptian ahwa to have indoor seating, these Egyptian cafes are usually outdoors.

Some Important Questions That You Can Ask

Can I have another chair? : momken korsi tani, low sama7t?

ممكن كرسي تاني لو سمحت؟

Is somebody sitting here (Lit: Is there one sit here)? : fe 7ad a3ed hena?

في حد قاعد هنا؟

Do you have a table? : 3andak tarbeza?

عندك ترابيزة؟

What To Order at an Egyptian Ahwa

These outdoor Egyptian cafes are great places to people watch.

And when you do, here’s how you order your drink.

I want… : 3ayz….

…عايز

We want… : 3ayzeen…

…عايزين

Coffee… : ahwa…

…قهوة

Remember, the “qaff” (ق) is usually silent in Egyptian Arabic.

Read our post on the letter “qaff” in Egyptian Arabic for more information.

After you say “coffee,” you have to tell them what kind…

…with no sugar/little sugar/medium sugar/extra sugar/extra-extra sugar. : …sada/3al re7a/mazboot/zyada/serya2osy.

.سادة/على الريحة/مظبوط/زيادة/سرياقوسي…

This is the most important information when ordering at an Egyptian ahwa.

While an ahwa might have a ton of different drinks, the one thing they are best at is what they are named after: coffee. Basically, what you need to know is this: you say “ahwa”, simply followed by the amount of sugar you want. It’s that easy.

If you have had Turkish coffee, that’s what this is. The major exception is that this Egyptian Turkish coffee (haha) comes without any milk.

Most people like it with at least a little bit of sugar. Egyptians (like so many other things) prefer it with extra.

If you want to try one drink in Cairo (besides delicious Egyptian juice, of course), let it be ahwa.

French coffee. : Ahwa faransawy/faransawy/ahwa b7aleeb.

.قهوة فرنساوي/فرنساوي/قهوة بحليب

This is literally translated from English to “French coffee.” You can also just say “French,” or even “coffee with milk.” Egyptians use all of them equally.

A Few More Examples

I want a coffee with medium sugar. : 3ayz ahwa mazboot.

.عايز قهوة مظبوط

I want a French coffee with extra sugar. : 3ayz farnsawy zeyada.

.عايز فرنساوي زيادة

Now on to the tea.

Less exciting than a new kind of coffee, but pretty much just as Egyptian. If ahwa is the drink Egyptians use to be classy, tea is their life blood that gets them through the day.

Your boweb, your taxi driver, the guy begging on the side of the street, your future Egyptian husband’s mother…..they all drink loads of the stuff.

Tea with mint / Tea. : Shai belna3na3 / shai.

.شاي بالنعناع/شاي

Sugar on the side (Lit: Sugar outside). : Sokkar barra.

.سكر برة

This last phrase about sugar is important. Egyptians quite like the sweet stuff, and you don’t want the guy to add like three spoons of sugar to your tea every time.

Egyptians and their sugary drinks is something I could talk about forever.

But we’ll let you figure it out yourself. 🙂

Pepsi. : bebsi.

.بيبسي

Coke. : Cola.

.كولا

Water. : Mayya.

.مياه

Lemon with mint. : lamoon na3na3 / lamoon belna3na3.

.ليمون نعناع / ليمون بالنعناع

This is delicious, and SO GOOD on a hot day.

Also, the word “mint” is quite difficult to say!

Can I have a straw? : momken shalemoh/shafata?

ممكن شاليموه / شفاطة؟

“Shaffata” is the Arabic word, but they use the French one as well.

Don’t worry; everybody understands it.

Extra Things You Might Order At An Egyptian Ahwa

What shisha do you have (Lit: You have shisha what)? : 3andak shisha eh?

عندك شيشة ايه؟

Is there shisha here? : fe shisha hena?

في شيشة هنا؟

The answer is almost always “yes.”

Coals, please. wela3a law sama7t.

.ولعة لو سمحت

Our post on how to order shisha will show you more info on this topic.

Is there food here? : fe akl hena?

في اكل هنا؟

Usually restaurants near any Egyptian ahwa can serve you food.

The restaurants actually make a large portion of their profits from tea drinkers that are hungry, and even send a guy to distribute the menu.

Paying at An Egyptian Ahwa When You Are Done

Can I pay now? : momken a7aseb dlwa2ty?

ممكن احاسب دلوقتي؟

I ordered Tea and Hibiscus, how much is that? : khadt shai w karkadeh, kam keda?

خدت شاي و كركديه, كام كده؟

Do you have change? : ma3ak fakka?

معاك فكة؟

Cultural Insight About Egyptian Ahwas

“Ahwa-ji” (taken from Turkish) is the name of the profession of the guy who serves the “ahwa” (Coffee).

The term “ji” in Turkish means “the person who works as…”. We also see this with “chai-ji” (the guy who serves tea).

Some years ago, Egypt acquired the term and have added it to Arabic words, as well. Another great example is a “gazma-gi” (the J sound turns into G with Egyptian Arabic). The word “gazma” means shoe, so you guessed it: the guy who makes and fixes shoes.

And one last thing: Egyptians don’t leave tips at awhas.

If you feel guilty…..just order two.

…..

Happy learning,

Cleo Lingo