THE coffee shop, a venerable institution of Middle Eastern origin, is reinventing itself in Cairo. The recent opening of Kotob Khan, a coffee shop with a twist, highlights the start of a new trend: The specialized coffee shop.
Coffee shops appeared in Cairo in the early years of the sixteenth century. A century later, there were more than three thousand, mostly street cafes which still exist to this day. If backgammon is still a popular game played by the customers of these humble establishments, other more elaborate coffeehouses formerly brought in live entertainment. Most often it was a story teller but there were also puppet shows and musicians.
Carsten Niebuhr, an 18th century European traveler in the region, describes Syrian coffee houses as: “Being the only profane theatres for the exercise of profane eloquence, poor scholars attend here to amuse the people. Select portions are read. Some aspire to the praise of invention, and compose tales and fables. They walk up and down as they recite, or assuming oratorial consequence, harangue upon subjects chosen by themselves.”
Today, the ubiquitous branded coffee shops (Costa, Joffrey’s, Starbucks, Cilantro etc.) offer an exhaustive choice of lattes and cappuccinos — in addition to the original Arabic coffee — with a loud musical background and are all over the city. Just like six centuries ago, these public spaces are still the perfect venue and excuse for people from all walks of life who want to meet their friends for pleasure or even business outside their private residences. Coffee has in fact been called the intellectual drink of democracy. People enjoy going to coffee shops because they can chat and gossip and be entertained in a leisurely manner for as long as they want and sometimes they even go there to work on their laptops or read a newspaper.
And this is the crux of the matter: Coffee shop aficionados are now looking for more than just a good cup of coffee and conversation. Karam Youssef, the charismatic owner of the delightful Kotob Khan has combined her passion for books with her love of coffee to create “a center for enlightenment, a cultural space” in a leafy residential suburb of Cairo. With a degree in mass communications, Karam worked for Egyptian TV co scripting Egyptian serials. She soon felt, however, that she did not fit into that particular world and ended up working as a management analyst. She values the experience she gained during the 13 years but she nevertheless admits that she always felt, out of place: “I was sure there was something else waiting for me. During the last five years, I thought of opening a bookshop specializing in rare books but then I quickly realized that there wasn’t really a big market for them. Furthermore, it is difficult to find rare books, so I concluded fairly quickly that it would be easier to open a bookshop. I am also aware that Arabs in general don’t read enough so I dreamed of creating a friendly and cozy atmosphere, a convivial space, where children, adolescents and adults could enjoy reading and drinking coffee at the same time,” explains Karam.
Knowing that most people settle for the easiest way, Karam wants to promote reading in every way possible. Reading, she feels, offers a intellectual alternative to watching television. And so, this courageous entrepreneur with a mission has set up monthly discussions with authors in her shop: “The discussions promote reading. I am currently focusing on modern Arab fiction. Our next guest will be Miral Al Tahawy who wrote “Blue Aubergine” and “The Tent. “I am also setting up a creative writing workshop with Yasser Abdullatif, an author and scriptwriter. Special readings for children are held on a weekly basis to encourage them to read and to show them that reading can be a source of pleasure. I also invite coffee aficionados and book lovers to special musical nights which take place every month. I am currently organizing a special tribute to the legendary singer Asmahan who died tragically in 1944. She was the sister of the famous singer, Farid Al Atrach.”
Married to the talented independent film maker Ahmed Abu Zeid, Karam also screens short films and documentaries on a regular basis. She acknowledges that it is challenging to choose — and find — not only good books but also interesting activities to animate the unique “cultural coffee shop.” She is grateful for what she is able to do since it is a dream come true. She has always considered reading a way of life. Sharing the joys of reading with her customers is now part of her job. She is determined to succeed and is filled with optimism as she notices the young generation is beginning to read more: “Self help books are incredibly popular among young Egyptian men and women, who want to improve their job performance and enhance their potential. A growing number of readers are also interested in hot issues, especially Middle Eastern topics.”
Kotob Khan has set the standard for a new kind of coffee shop. In a world drastically changed by globalization, a growing number of people are moving away from the grossly materialistic ideology of business, market and profit. Those who do not want to become involved in those three might consider enjoying a cappuccino in a Kotob Khan style of cultural coffee shop. In between two meetings or after work, it might help them stand back and give them the insight to renew their sense of reality and find a more satisfying meaning and purpose to their lives.
