A group of doctors in Egypt have taken their medical skills outside of the operating room, and into the kitchen.

United by a love for food, more than ten full-time doctors decided to pool their resources and invest in a fast food restaurant, which offers high-quality food to local residents in Damanhour, a city in Egypt’s north.

Mostafa Basiouny and his fellow founders were trying to fill a gap in the market which they say is riddled with restaurants selling unsafe food, with many food outlets not following proper hygienic procedures.

“The idea is simple. First of all, investment, especially into the food industry, is currently a very good investment. Secondly, we have invested in a field which is close to our field, which is medicine.

“The food industry is also for example under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Health so we haven’t really gone far. We have tried to take the values of our careers and to apply them into another field. There is no contradiction between both fields, we are still practising our career as doctors, and there is no problem because we are simultaneously offering a special service to the people and it’s something they will really like and enjoy,” he said.

So, they decided to use their knowledge to create a menu that was affordable, of a high quality, and prepared in a kitchen with sterilised utensils.

“This is not a negative thing, it is a very positive thing because our studies have helped us research, which reflects on how well cooked the food is and the quality of the herbs, and it reflects on the wrapping and how the sandwich leaves the kitchen.

“Employees in the kitchen are always wearing gloves and no one touches the food, the first person to touch the food is the customer when he is eating and this is something that we can trace back to the research which has reflected on the restaurant’s decoration and appearance as well as the quality of food,” co-owner and chef, Mohamed Shashb.

The kitchen was modelled on an operating theatre and the owners have incorporated medical terms into the names of the dishes.