We always start our walk at Auntie Anne’s. It used to be we would go to Jared’s Bagels, but our first trip to Maadi after the revolution revealed that they have moved to another location. We were pleased to find Auntie Anne’s just a few steps further down the road.
I love Auntie Anne’s because it reminds me of home and the pretzels are so delicious, much better than The Pretzel Factory. I have tried most of the meatless options and my husband has tried all of the meaty ones. I usually start my Friday with an original pretzel with cheese dip. It’s just so classic. This last time we went, I added an iced coffee drink and it really hit the spot.
My husband usually starts with a pretzel dog or pepperoni pretzel or both. We tend to eat until the dip runs out! Also, in this store the stools are rather close to the counter, so to order something else you basically just have to turn around. The staff is very friendly, too.
With full bellies, we next head up the street to the Bookspot. It’s a small, but charming bookstore stocking both new and used books. They also claim to take in used books, but I’ve had varying success in that regard. I usually fill my tote bag with books and attempt to trade them in. The Bookspot will always buy back its own books at half price, but they are inconsistent when it comes to accepting other books. I’ve heard nearly every excuse when it comes to why they won’t take other books. I am careful about the condition of my books, but it doesn’t seem to matter there. Last time, they refused a book I had bought new and only read once. Why? The pages weren’t white enough. I suspect that they stopped taking other books because of a post-revolution slow down, but they don’t want to say that just yet.
In any case, they have a great selection of my favorite genre – mysteries. I always find good mystery books there and usually walk away with five or six to hold me over until our next visit.
Books in hand, we leave and head back to our first stop, Auntie Anne’s. Since we live in Giza, we don’t have many chances to buy pretzels. We have had success in making them at home, but it’s still a treat to buy them here. For our return trip, we usually get two or three pretzels each with the appropriate dip. My favorites are the chocolate chip pretzel, the original one, and the sour cream and onion one. My husband loves the cheesy dog and classic pretzel.
After taking our pretzels for the road, we usually walk a bit, pretend to want to take the metro home, and get in a taxi. We are home by 1 o’clock and usually relax with our remaining pretzels. It’s almost a shame that we are so blinded by our pretzel love because there are so many nice restaurants in Maadi that we have yet to try. Well, there’s always next Friday.