A former science student turned advertising professional, Dareen’s journey into the food world began not with a business plan, but with an obsession: learning to bake exceptional bread during her pregnancy.

After years spent working in restaurants, pubs, and eventually global ad agencies, Dareen’s creative energy collided with entrepreneurial ambition following a move to Egypt in 2019 with her husband and children.

Frustrated by the lack of authentic European-style bread and pizza in Cairo, she combined her love of baking with formal training at the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) in Naples. There, she refined her skills and deepened her understanding of Neapolitan technique.

In April 2020, amid pandemic lockdowns and economic uncertainty, Dareen opened What the Crust, Egypt’s first certified AVPN pizzeria. Housed in a former garage that she and her husband personally refurbished, the restaurant began with just 24 seats, a custom oven from Naples, and a bold vision: to offer Cairo something it had never tasted before—true artisanal pizza, made with carefully sourced ingredients and obsessive attention to detail.