—Gazette photo by Doreen Gunness
TASTE OF MOROCCO. Asha Moroccan Mediterranean Kitchen recently opened in the East Village Arts District.
Posted: Friday, March 9, 2012 12:00 pm
By Larry Hill
Food Writer | 0 comments
Asha Moroccan Mediterranean Kitchen, 149 Linden Ave., Suite E, 628-2255.
• Hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• Location: Asha is located at the corner of Linden and Broadway facing Broadway. There is parking in the neighborhood.
• Food/Drinks: Appetizers include pastilla (chicken with almond cinnamon stuffing in phyllo), Cigars, Zaolook (fire-roasted eggplant), grape leaves, Baba Ghanouj (fire-roasted eggplant), Foul M’ammas (Fava beans simmered with tomatoes), Shakshooka (fire-roasted peppers, onions, sautéed with tomatoes, parsley and garlic), hummus, spicy Moroccan olives and falafel.
Entrées include Chicken Tawook (marinated chicken breast charbroiled), lamb chops, lamb kabob, kafta,and Royal Asha. There are couscous dishes with beef or veggies. Also, tthere are tajeens such as fish, lamb with prunes, kafta with roasted tomatoes and chicken with potatoes and olives.
Salads include tabouli, fattoush and Asha salad. Soups include Harira Vegetarian and Harira with Beef. Sandwiches include falafel, kafta, beef kabob, lamb kabob, and chicken Tawook. Desserts include Bakalawa and ice cream.
• Atmosphere: The dining area is clean and nicely appointed. The atmosphere is modern and comfortable. There are dining rooms downstairs and upstairs.
• The Taste: Jennifer and I stopped for a midweek dinner. We sat upstairs in a small landing area that was quite comfortable and pleasant. Within minutes, we had a plate of fresh cucumber pickles, kefir cheese and pita.
We ordered the mixed platter appetizer with grape leaves, falafel, Baba Ghanouj, Shakshooka and spicy Moroccan olives. It’s an amazing platter. The flavors are wonderful and there is a nice sample of everything. The Baba Ghanouj is very smoky. The fire-roasted peppers are also a great relish.
We mulled over the menu. There were many items that looked quite tantalizing. I was thinking of the Beef Couscous, beef stew ladled over couscous; lamb with prunes slowly cooked in a tajeen with almond; kafta with roasted tomatoes tajeen, but I ultimately opted for the Royal Asha dinner.
Jennifer selected the chicken tawook. Her platter came with a generous serving of cubed chicken breast that had been marinated in lemon and spices and then charbroiled. Basmati rice accompanied her dinner along with fattoush salad and garlic sauce. The chicken was tender, with a slight smokiness from charbroiling, and nice snap from a generous squeeze of lemon juice.
The Royal Asha platter came with chicken tawook, filet mignon kabobs and a pair of lamb chops. Basmati rice accompanied the dish and I opted for tabouli salad. The chicken was excellent as mentioned, and the filet kabobs were tender and very beefy in taste, but the lamb chops were amazing. Two large plump chops were marinated and grilled. Great.
The East Village Arts District is where all the action is these days: new restaurants opening, new shops, and new galleries to stroll through before or after dinner. Asha Moroccan Mediterranean Kitchen is the newest and offers a unique dining experience in the area. The food is wonderful, the service is excellent, and the prices are reasonable.
• Price: Lunch or dinner for two is $20 to $40+.
