Morocco's in downtown SJ

[sairuh]

Has anyone been to Morocco's in downtown San José? It'd be great to have an (hopefully better, more low-key) alternative to Menara in the South Bay.

I wonder what the bstilla are like, if they serve them.

Yelp reviews:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/moroccos-san-...

[hhc]

I got a take-out menu & went inside. Billed as Moroccan Fusion. They don't serve bastilla - so sad. Noticed diners eating with utensils, and there was a cello player playing on Sat night. Some outdoor seating on the sidewalk.

From the take-out menu: different pricing for Lunch & Dinner noted:

Sandwiches served w/ a side salad:
Morocali Chicken Sandwich $7
Kefta sandwich $8
Veggie wrap $7
Morocco's burrito $8

Signature meats-served w/ vegetables & choice of basmati rice or couscous
chicken kebabs $11/14
beef kebabs $14/18
fish of the day $15/18
Morocco's ribeye $15/18

Kefta-patties of Moroccan spiced ground meat
lamb $8/12
beef 8/12

Tagines-served w/ Morocco's bread or basmati rice
chicken tagine 10/15
beef tagine 11/16
lamb tagine $12/17
fresh fish tagine 15/18
vegetarian tagine 10/12
royal tagine 12/15
create your own tagine 13/19

couscous plate
vegetarian 10/12
beef & vegetable 12/14
lamb & vegetable 15/17
Imperial 14/16

salads:
Mediterranean salad 8
lentil salad 7
cold beet & potato salad 7
spinach & fruit salad 8
Morocco's couscous salad 8

appetizers:
nut & cheese sampler 5/7
shrimp Pil-Pil 8/12
kebab sampler 8/10
briwatts 7/10
prawn skewers 10/14

beverages
mineral water: Perrier or Evian 5
soda/ice tea $2.5
lemonade 2.5
organic 100% pure Arabica coffee 2.5
Fantasmint tea 3

Morocco's Restaurant
86 N. Market St
SJ CA 95113
408-998-1509

Hrs:
Lunch 11-3
Dinner: 5-11

Delivery available, minimum $50.

[sairuh]

hhc, thanks for posting the menu details!

We went last week; they're definitely still finding their footing, with several dishes sold out or unavailable --then again, they've been open for less than 2 months.

What we got:

Fantasmint tea: Good! They chop up the mint (rather than whole leaves), and it's not as highly sweetened as other Moroccan teas I've had. Free refills, too.

Veggie briwatt (they ran out of the chicken-almond, darn, as that would be a similar analog to bstilla), filled with carrots, squash(?), ginger and chiles. Quite tasty.

Shrimp pil-pil, with a spicy-garlicky tomato sauce. Has quite a kick which I enjoyed.

Customized tagine, made with chicken (super tender), carrots, prunes, cabbage and potatoes, in a tasty subtle sauce. They ran out of bread, so gave us servings of couscous and rice.

Dessert: crème brulées, one flavored lemon-saffron (I liked the taste) and another almond (far too much essence, nearly like marzipan, which neither of us like). The egg was a bit curdled rather than smooth, so I think they need to polish this recipe some more to get the correct texture.

Service was very friendly, mellow, and non-pushy.

Overall, this place has potential. It'll be interesting to see how they develop over the coming months/years. I'd certainly like to have at least one better alternative in the South Bay to Menara.

[hhc]

Thanks Sairuh for the report. That briwatt sounds yummy.

So you got 2 creme brulees with different flavors? I didn't see dessert on the take-out menu.

What's Shrimp pil-pil? How's the shrimp? Is it steamed, baked, fried?

[sairuh]

The desserts were printed separately on cards on some of the tables. A single order of crème brulée consisted of two ramekins. I cannot remember the other dessert choices, except for ice cream, something called "Morocco chocolate delight" which was really a dense chocolate torte (according to the waitress), and an almond-honey briwatt (which I would've ordered, except they didn't have any that night).

Shrimp pil-pil: Hmmm, I think they were either grilled or sautéed --apologies for the poor memory again. (They were definitely not deep/batter-fried, though.) It seemed like the sauce (tomato-y, chile-spicy, with many garlic chunks and prolly some cilantro) was, afaict, added as a garnish (a generous one) rather than the shrimp being cooked in it. They used prawns that were about 3-4ish inches in length.

Addendum: Both the briwatts (5 phyllo pastries to an order) and the shrimp pil-pil (6 shrimp maybe?) were served on a bed of fresh (uncooked) spinach leaves.