For our first night at the Sofitel Tour Blanche here in Casablanca, Morocco, we had decided to eat the highly regarded Moroccan in the hotel called Atelier Original, but we discovered it had been closed and ended up trying the Brasserie La Tour, basically an breakfast, lunch and dinner spot in the lobby. It was cozy enough and pretty deserted for a Sunday evening, but the manager Fayçal (we would write Faisal) was most welcoming and we were thrilled when he handed us the tiny Moroccan menu so we could skip the fish, steak, chops and burger!
First came a bowl of spiced green olives that were simply addictive and perhaps the best ever anywhere. A bottle of superb local Sauvignon Blanc from Medaillon (from Domaines des Ouled Thaleb Benslimane) had a yummy creaminess to it and we knew that the local wines would be a treat this trip, especially at just around $30-40 a bottle!
We ordered the Selection of cold mezze which was about $15 and was four huge plates that were out of this world. Fettoush salad was cucumber, tomato, onion, green pepper all in a super balsamic dressing and oddly I loved the peppers as they had so much flavor (and no after effects!). My favorite was the beautiful white Labneh, a middle eastern cross between yogurt and sour cream that has a tang and was drizzled with olive oil. The pita-like Lebanese flatbreads were ideal and not thick here, so you did not fear carb overdose. Mouttabal is very similar to baba ghanoush but sometimes may or may not have yogurt in it...we never did find out. The hummus was the fourth plate and was a dream--thick and rich ad drizzled with oil and a hint of paprika. There are fotos on my FB page and you will see that this could have fed four people!!
We moved on to a bottle of Terre Rouges 2020 red from Cotes du Rommani which was a nice red but we could not ascertain the grapes. It paired well with Will's Machaoui, a plate of grilled meats (chicken, beef and ground beef) with fries as well as my delightful Chicken Tagine with Lemon. The tagine, of course, came to the table in the traditional domed clay pot and the meat fell off the bone but was not dry at all due to the beautifully spiced and lemony sauce. Oddly it is served with fries on top here!!
We were stuffed and took the second half of the red bottle to our room to have with some macaroons and treats the hotel had sent up earlier. Off to bed after a first exhausting day!
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