The mayor, a trio of Aussies and a gregarious 12-year-old walk into an Egyptian cafe and witness World Cup history
A World Cup match has more than a few things in common with making a feteer: it takes time, repetitive labor and layered craftsmanship.
A crowd of spectators gathered to indulge in the traditional Egyptian pastry at Feteers restaurant in northwest Spokane on Friday while witnessing a milestone in the nation's World Cup record books. After four appearances across nearly a century, the Pharaohs finally have a knockout win.
A feteer is one of the oldest recipes known to man. Water, flour and salt are folded into a dough, which is stretched and stacked, brushed with clarified butter and stuffed with an assortment of fillings. The saucerlike dish comes out of the oven crackling, in temperature and flakiness.
Ancient Egyptians once left it as an offering to the gods. On Northwest Boulevard, husband and wife duo Amir Talb and Leila Al-Tassan offer them to Spokane patrons.
Talb and Al-Tassan opened Feteers in May just as word began to spread of Spokane's selection as the Pharaohs' host city. Talb said the shop has benefited from the exposure to the nation. Business has remained steady with locals looking to try the cuisine.
Al-Tassan said the timing was fortunate. Offering their cuisine to Spokane has been a dream since the couple moved to the city 20 years ago.
"We couldn't have imagined or asked for anything better," Al-Tassan said.
The former Subway location teemed with activity throughout the 90-minute match, subsequent pair of overtime periods and the final shootout. Among the more than two dozen or so patrons who cycled through were hungry college students, Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown and an Australian family wearing their country's signature yellow kits.
Tim Lane grew up in Adelaide, Australia, and relocated to the U.S. 14 years ago. He said he and his teenage son and daughter, also Australian, live in Park City, Utah, but are spending the weekend at a cabin in Harrison, Idaho.
They made the roughly two-hour drive Friday to watch the game after coming across a news reports on Feteers, which happens to be Washington's only feteers restaurant. It also happens to be in the very city hosting the Egyptian national team.
"We were looking for a place to watch the game, and well, we also didn't see any Australian bars in town," Lane said.
The family shared a meal and sat through the entirety of the game as a steady stream of non-soccer fans at the tables around them ate their meals and left. As they left, Lane, Al-Tassan and Talb exchanged kind remarks about the game and the meal.
Lane said the family had plans to do some grilling over the holiday weekend, so the feteers were a welcome change-up that fit the occasion. He said the family has enjoyed rooting for the Socceroos in the World Cup and were even able to attend a game in San Francisco.
"It was a nil-nil draw with Paraguay but at least it allowed us to get to this stage," Lane said.
The youngest, but no less fervent, spectator was 12-year-old Khaled Talban, Talban and Al-Tassan's son.
The gregarious pre-teen runs the order counter like a seasoned veteran. In between taking orders with his mother, Khaled kept his eyes glued to the game, lamenting how tight the contest was with an occasional soft comment.
"The midfielders are pushing up too much to try to score, but that's what the strikers are there for," Khaled said.
It was clear the apple didn't fall far from the tree.
Talb watched with a similar passion. He clutched an Egyptian flag in his right hand while greeting guests, delivering orders and clearing cutlery throughout the first half.
He poked his head out from around the old Subway cold counter and cracked a smile when the halftime show played a clip of a crowd in Cairo cheering after the opening goal.
"Where we were born, in Egypt, the sport is huge," Talb said.
Al-Tassan said the family got to meet leading all-time national team scorer and head coach Hommad Hassan, as well as star player Mo Salah, earlier this week, ahead of the team's trip to Dallas to take on Australia.
While the players are on a strict diet that does not allow for outside food, Talb said he was happy he and his wife were able to provide the coaching staff and administrators with "a taste of home."
"It was amazing," Talb said. "We've been very happy to see them here in Spokane."
Al-Tassan said it was a lovely memory. Friday was a great day to be in the shop, watching a game with a community that she feels supported by, she said. She's grateful for Spokane's warm welcome.
"It was a great victory for Egypt and we couldn't be more proud for this country," Al-Tassan said. "We appreciate that everyone came out to support the team like this - we even had some Australians."
Khaled said Salah is his favorite player. When asked his thoughts on the gravity of the win, and the shop's success, he paused for a moment.
Meanwhile, Talb delivered complimentary desserts to all the patrons still around after the final penalty kick. The shop erupted in cheers and applause when the victory became clear, the loudest of which was Talban's proclamation everyone would be going home with Egyptian basbousa cake.
"It's, like, crazy," Khaled said. "We've been waiting years for this."
"It's funny how they made it further into the FIFA World Cup than they ever have this year and we opened up the shop this year," Khaled said.
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This story was originally published July 3, 2026 at 7:05 PM.