Inside Tamara Haus: Where Cairo’s Heritage Meets Contemporary Design

Downtown Cairo is a living archive of culture, a place where the past lingers in its architecture, the present pulses through its creative communities, and the future is constantly reimagined. Today, a new chapter is being written in its story.

Tamara Haus is a cultural space conceptualised and brought to life inside Tamara Building by Alchemy Experience, the brainchild of Egyptian designers Karim Mekhtigian, Mohamed Fares, and Emy Hussein. Tamara Building owned - and is currently being restored - by Al Ismaelia for Real Estate Investment. Here, innovators are redefining how the city’s heritage is experienced through design, food, and artistic expression.

“Alchemy Experience transcends traditional boundaries by offering a unique fusion of spatial codes, lifestyle, products, hospitality, and experiential journeys,” Mohamed Fares, Founder of Alchemy Experience, tells SceneHome. “Inspired by the ancient art of alchemy, it seeks to create transformative experiences that awaken the senses, nourish the soul, and elevates everyday life to extraordinary heights.”

Inside, every detail is a celebration of contemporary design rooted in heritage. The space brings together a variety of furniture makers such as Kenda and Aura, tableware from The Mob Collective, artworks by Marmonil and Le Lab, Kiza’s clothing, and wallpaper and fabric selections from Seda and Design Emporium.

Tamara Haus is simultaneously a showcase of craftsmanship and an immersive experience in itself - one where design isn’t just admired but lived in. “The story of Tamara Haus touches on the past, present, and future of Downtown Cairo,” Fares adds. “We are time travellers. Tamara is an everyday journey of memory revival and cultural inspiration, offering our future generations a chance to live and engage with our rich cultural heritage through contemporary translations.”

As Emy Hussein, Co-Founder of Alchemy Experience, explains, “This gathering will bring forth a sustainable creative industry business model that energetically shapes tomorrow’s culture.”

This philosophy extends into Tchaï, a boutique tea house at the heart of the space, where gastronomy and storytelling intertwine to offer a contemporary lens on the flavours of Cairo’s past. Even the act of gathering, sharing, and conversing - once central to Cairo’s historic coffeehouses - is being reinterpreted through an alchemist’s lens.

Situated in the court, the heart of Tamara Haus, Tchaï is a boutique teahouse crafted as a gastronomic odyssey that blends storytelling and artistry with the cultural heritage of Downtown Cairo along with its historic culinary landscape. “This space engages one’s five senses. We aim to express modern Egypt from the encounters born in this space through the food,” Karim Mekhitigian, Founder of Alchemy Experience, tells SceneHome.

Hourig Mekhtigian, Culinary Director of Tchaï, adds, “It presents itself as a captivating sensory expedition, where there’s a harmonious interplay of flavours, textures, and cultures.” The menu, which changes by the season, offers a selection of small sharing plates, allowing guests to explore familiar flavours reimagined in new ways. “Tchaï is a place where communications are born. We hope to reflect Cairo as it lives in our minds, and how it should be today; a place where people meet.”

Lounging in the teahouse court, you’ll find miniature hippos placed in curated corners. They’re one of many art toys created by Mekhtigian’s brand Kyme Toys - part of his creative studio Kyme which, along with his product design brand Analogue, has dedicated stores within Tamara Haus.

D’HippO, Kyme Toys’ latest creation, is a bold reimagining of Tawaret - the ancient Egyptian goddess of childbirth, and the protector of mothers and children - in toy form. “This unique reinterpretation of the traditional Tawaret Hippo takes on a dynamic and transformative persona, embodying the essence of protection against all forms of evil,” Mekhitigian explains.

“Now towering on two powerful legs, D’HippO commands attention and exudes a palpable sense of strength and determination,” Emy Hussein adds. “The shift in form is accentuated by its piercing eyes, which radiate an intense energy.”

Analogue, on the other hand, is the result of a marriage between home decor and artful hosting. It’s Mekhitigian medium through which he blends product design with fragrances to present a complete complement to accessorising living spaces.

“In ancient Egyptian history, the fig symbolises a sacred offering on the journey from this life to the afterlife,” Mekhitigian says, referencing Analogue’s logo and the brand identity as a whole. “Analogue embodies these characteristics and shares the same energy in defining a path that links the past with visions of the future.”

Tamara Haus will be completed in early 2026, adding 25 boutique hotel rooms, rooftop restaurants, and a gym. From stunning utilisation of space to state-of-the-art hospitality, the vision for Tamara Haus is expansive, delving into art, architecture, and urban renewal - a movement to bring together the city’s most innovative minds to shape its next era.