[Costa Mesa] [Moroccan] Marrakesh Restaurants

Marrakesh Restaurant
1976 Newport Blvd
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
(949) 645-8384
http://www.marrakeshdining.com

I've been to Marrakesh Restaurant once a long long time ago for a friend's birthday.  I wrote a post on my blog about it back in 2005.  I remember the food was delicious.  So when I saw Marrakesh on restaurant.com, I bought a $25 gift certificate right away. After a fun afternoon at Pet Expo, we headed to Mrrakesh for an exotic Moroccan dinner date.



We came for an early dinner around 5:30pm.  We just self parked at their parking lot.  When we left around 7:30pm, we noticed by then it was valet parking only.




The restaurant was divided into different "tents".  At first we were seated in a tent with a big group with kids.  The kids were loud, and running around like crazy.  We requested to change to a quieter area.  Then we got our privet tent for most of the night.  haha....



After placing our orders, a waiter came to the table.  I thought he was going to pour us some water.  But the water was actually for us to wash our hands.  Is Moroccan food eaten by hands traditionally?


Casablanca Morocco Beer ($4.50)

Dr. P wanted a beer really bad at Pet Expo.  A large cup of beer was $12 at the expo.  I stopped him, and said he could have 2 beers for that price at dinner.  So he had 2 Moroccan beers and it was still cheaper than $12.  This Moroccan beer is called Casablanca.  I thought it was one of those stronger tasting beer.  Dr. P liked it quite a bit, and that was why he had two.


Bread

We both ordered set dinner, which came with the same fixings but different entrees.  The meal started with some freshly baked bread.  The bread was dense, but still soft.  The bread was great with the salad.


Soup (Harira)
Vegetables soup with lentils, tomatoes and garbanzo beans

The soup was to be eaten the Moroccan way, without spoon.  Dr. P is still talking about how good the soup was today.  The lentil soup was really tasty, especially with some lemon juice.


Salads
Three traditional Moroccan salads: marinated eggplant, tomatoes and cucumbers, spiced carrots

We love all the salads on this plate.  The carrot was sweet and soft.  Cucumber was crisp and refreshing.  Eggplant was creamy and really good with bread.  Potato had really good seasoning.



When our waiter asked how was the salad, we said we love it, especially the cucumber salad.  He then brought us an extra plate of it.  So nice of him!


Bastilla
Filo dough stuffed with chicken, eggs and almonds baked covered with powdered sugar and cinnamon

Hey, I just noticed there was a camel on our Bastilla.  I didn't even see that at the restaurant.  haha....  I remember this dish the most from my last visit 5 years ago.  This "chicken pie" was made with filo dough.  It was sweet on the outside with the sugar and cinnamon.



The inside was filled with ground chicken, egg, and almond.  I love the sweet and savory combination.  Very very good dish.


Hot Chili Sauce

Time for the main course.  Our waiter brought us some hot chili sauce first.  The chili sauce tasted http://www.eileenlikestoeat.commade, and is similar to Asian chili sauce.  It was great.


Chicken with Lemon & Olives ($26.95)
Roasted and served with olives and preserved lemons

I ordered the Fassi Dinner set.  The entree choices are Chicken with Lemon & Olives and Lamb with Couscous.  I picked the chicken.  It was a big piece of chicken breast on the plate.  The outer parts of the chicken was a bit dry.  But with chicken breast, it was understandable.  But with the lemon & olive sauce, the chicken was good.  Then with a little bit of hot sauce, it was great.  The flavor was really good.


Lamb Kabobs
Served over couscous vegetables

Dr. P ordered Traditional Feast dinner set.  It came with an extra dish of kabob and couscous.  He picked lamb kabob, and it was one of the best kabob we've ever had.  The meat was so tender, and seasoned perfectly.  Couscous was tasty with raisins and garbanzo beans.


Roasted Lamb with Honey Sauce ($29.95)

Traditional Feast has more choices for entree, chicken, lamb, duck, rabbit, quail, or fish.  Dr. P picked Honey Lamb.  This dish was OMG good.  It got that sweet and savory flavor again, and I love it!  The lamb and the sauce was slightly sweet with honey fragrance.  The meat was so tender that it just fell off the bone.  My favorite part of the meat was near the bone.  So delicious!



After the main course, the waiter came and poured us some hot mint tea.  This guy has mad aiming skills!


Fresh Mint Tea / Homemade Baklava

The mint tea tasted like it was made from fresh mint leaves.  Baklava wasn't too sweet.  It was the perfect way to end a feast.



But wait,the meal didn't end right there.  We got a belly dancer doing a private show for us right in front of our table!  She's the same belly dancer from 5 years ago!!  Now I can say again, it was the perfect way to end a feast.



It was a great meal.  We both like Marrakesh a lot.  Food was great, and service was great as well.  We will definitely go back again.



And the manager even gave us a $10 coupon for next visit.  Nice!  I'll be back very shortly!

[ad#ad-unit]