16/05/2015
She
said: Craving middle-eastern food we hit Edware Road. We sat in an Iranian
place with a great menu only to be told that each thing we ordered was not
ready so we left. Starving, I noticed an inviting Morrocan spot I’d not seen
before. Don’t know why as it’s a big, double fronted restaurant near the Marble
Arch end. Most people were sitting outside along the narrow row of tables
soaking in the polluted procession of buses and taxis but we opted for the
indoor space which had a classic Kasbah vibe with hanging draped ceilings and
shimmering chandeliers. The menu was great. When I got excited by the generous
olives and crudites with garlic and chilli sauces, he pointed out there was a
£2 cover charge each so the complimentary nibbles were not quite so
complimentary – but good nonetheless. The menu was excellent with lots of
choice. The food was amazing. My Briwat spinach was a creamy, smooth spinach
delicately wrapped in a thin filo and my main fish tagine was full of flavour
wih an array of juicy vegetables. I wanted pudding but had already made a later
cake date…The service was friendly and efficient and we were told abut the live
entertainment at weekends which created a wedding atmosphere of jubilation – so
I need to come back for sweets and then to shake it off with the belly
dancers…An excellent find for all occasions.
He
said: when we came back form hiking in Morocco, a couple of years ago, we kind
of looked around London for a solid Moroccan restaurant, hoping to recreate an
amazing dinner we had, but mainly to find this killer desert called pastilla. But this gem was right under
our nose, and we blanked it all along. Sidi Maarouf is one block from Marble
Arch on Edgware Road – a busy, anonymous corner so easily avoided and with no
pull whatsoever until the day we found Sidi Maarouf by total chance. At first I
was a little worried by a décor so full-on Moroccan that it was borderline
Disney. But the menu was good, and the service so genuinely hospitable that I
quickly forgot about all that, and made a mental note to come back on a
Saturday night when, according to our waitress, the ambiance is proper Moroccan
wedding with live music and everyone dancing. I had a light lentil soup to
start, and grilled prawns to follow. Both were just right, as were her fried
filo parcels filled with fluffy spinach. My only gripe is that prices were on
the high side, and amplified by that bizarrely antiquated practice of adding on
a cover charge. Still, once you throw in the music and dancing, it’s probably good
value for undeniably good food.
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