EZTrip.com International Destination Guide and Hotel Listings

Matrouh is not exactly a metropolis, but it has a fair spread of restaurants and most services that you might want to make use of. Sharia Iskandariya overflows with grocery stores, bakeries, fruit and veg stalls and outlets for beach-gear.

Besides the following, there is swanky hotel dining in the Riviera Palace and Beau Site. Other hotel restaurants probably have less to offer than the places listed below, and are bound to charge more. The opening hours given are for summertime; over winter, most places close before midnight, though coffee houses on the main drag and at the bus station square stay open till the small hours.

The Beau Site hosts the better of Matrouh's two discos ; the other, Disco 54 at the Radi Hotel, doesn't get going until well into the tourist season, like the nightclubs in other three-star hotels.

Abdu Kofta , corner of Tahrir and Zaher Galal. Small, clean place to consume grilled chicken (£E14), kofta or kebab (£E26-28 per kilo). Try the molukhiyya soup. Open daily 10am-2am.

New Alexandria Tourist Restaurant , Sharia Iskandariya. One of the best low-budget options; a full fish meal costs only £E15. May sell beer. Daily 9am-midnight (last orders 10.30pm).

Anji , Sharia Cleopatra. Decent burgers and veggie stew in an environment that's OK for solo women. Also does breakfast and ice cream. Daily 10am-10pm.

Hani el-Omda , Sharia Tahrir. Cool, clean and dimly lit. Good for simple meals: a quarter-kilo of kofta with salads and bread costs £E8. Daily 9am-midnight.

Mansour Fish Restaurant , Sharia Tahrir. Attracts trendy young Egyptians who watch videos over their fish or lobster and salad. Pricier than the rest, but worth it. Daily 11am-3am.

Panyatis Greek Restaurant , Sharia Iskandariya. Not especially Greek, but it has been around since 1922. Sells fried fish (£E20), calamari (£E15), salad, tahina and beer. Open daily 8am-midnight.

Pizza Gaby , 850m west along the Corniche. Fine, if you can bear its tacky decor and music, intended to lure guests from the Hotel Negresco. Daily 11am-midnight.

Pizza King , Beyond the Gaby, up an alley to the left past the New Lido Hotel. A humbler take-away with tables, but the pizzas (£E7-10) here are better. Daily 6pm-3am.

Restaurant Sharisard , Sharia Iskandariya. Tasty fuul, felafel, shawarmas, liver and other cheap eats. Claims to be open 24 hours. Highly recommended.