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| Pastilla Café |
Pastilla
Café is an unique establishment that served traditional Moroccan
cuisine and Mediterranean Cuisine as well. Owned by Chef Said
Ibrahimi, a born Moroccan which previous stint includes Pasha at
Sultan Hotel, thus there is no one else better to introduce Moroccan
cuisine to us than him. As I never had Moroccan dishes before, this
is going to be a unique experience.
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| Part of Dining Area |
We
started the dinner with Merguez ($9.50). Grilled homemade lamb
sausage, which was tender but dense. The lamb sausage seasoning of
paprika, cumin and coriander are pretty strong so it cover any gamy
flavour from the lamb. Served with flat bread, we roll the flat bread
with the sausage making it a sausage roll. The bell pepper sauce for
dipping similar to our sambal. The bell pepper had went through the
process of grilling, thus it tasted tangy with a smoky flavour but it
is not spicy. It suited to my taste.
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| Merguez - Grilled homemade Lamb Sausage |
Chicken
Tajine ($14.90) are next. 1/2 small size chicken cooked in tajine
with seasonal vegetables, olives and preserved lemons. Tajine is
unique Morocco cookware made from clay which allow the dishes to be
steam and simmer slowly. Resulting in tender and succulent chicken
with unique lemon tangy flavour almost like in Greek cuisine. Served
with a loaf of bread that have bigger pores, it become a sponge to
absorb the delicious gravy from the dish.
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| Chicken Tajine |
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| Chicken Tajine - Up Close |
From two
legged protein, we moved to the four legged lamb. Lamb Mechoul
($16.90). Moroccan style slow roast lamb shank, with lamb gravy. The
meat on the lamb shank basically fall of the bone and melts in your
mouth. One of the tastiest lamb dish I ever tried. The gravy was
robust with a hint of paprika, it goes well with the basmati saffron
rice and grilled vegetables. Yum Yum, two thumbs up!!
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| Lamb Mechoul |
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| Moroccan style slow roast lamb shank with Gravy |
Eggplant
lovers will like this dish. Baked Classic Moussaka ($16.90). Layered
eggplant, tomato, onion, potato and lamb topped with bechamel sauce
and melted cheese. Both LD and I are not the eggplant people,
however we did give this dish a try. Tasted like eggplant lasagna,
with a beautiful lamb sauce.
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| Baked Classic Moussaka |
We
rounded up our savoury dish with Seafood Paella Rice ($16.90). Baked
saffron rice with sliced fish, mussels, prawns chicken and herbs.
This is Chef Said version of Paella. Packs of seasoning, heat from
dried chilli and pepper with beautiful seafood flavour. The rice is
just so tasty, we finished up the whole plate.
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| Seafood Paella Rice |
While we
were almost filled to the brim, Chef Said served the desserts. Oum
Ali ($6.50), Konafa ($6.50) with Pot of Moroccan Special House Blend
Tea ($7.80). According to Chef Said, Oum Ali originated from Egypt,
as Moroccan recognised desserts are biscuits to go with the tea. It
has a texture of sticky date pudding, when served warm it just creamy
and melts with your mouth. The sweetness level was just right for us.
Two thumbs up for this dessert!
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| Oum Ali |
Konafa
(or Kunafa) originated from Turkey. Known as Middle Eastern version
of cheese danish. A cheesy pastry with fragrant smell from orange
blossom water rose water. It is slightly too sweet and cheesy for our
liking. To accompany the desserts was Pot of Moroccan Special House
Blend Tea. It was thick, fragrant but as per normal Middle Eastern
tea, sugar was added. Maybe I would ask them not to add sugar next
time.
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| Konafa |
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| Moroccan Special House Blend Tea |
For other
unique drink, you can try their Homemade Moroccan Lemonade ($4.50).
For extra twang of freshness, mint leaf was added.
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| Homemade Moroccan Lemonade |
Pastilla
Café has a homely set-up and fully decorated with Moroccan / Middle
Eastern style. There is Moroccan music to serenade you while you are
having your meal here. Located in 334 Changi Road, it is directly
opposite SPC, before Telok Kurau Road. There is no parking outside
the shop, however you can park at Lorong Marican, a small road after
SPC (Behind Zac Butchery) or the service lane after Telok Kurau road.
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| Part of Dining Area |
Overall,
we had a memorable dining experience in trying Moroccan cuisine. Not
only we discover new flavours, we also discover the uniqueness of
Moroccan cuisine. We will definitely return for more in the future.
Saha wa'afiab !! Cheers!!
During
this Ramadan Period, Pastilla Cafe have Ramadan Special Set Menu for
Iftar. Please check their Facebook page for the details. Thank you
very much to Chef Said Ibrahimi and Sara for the tasting invitation.
Food
& Drink: 8.25/10
Value:
7.5/10
Service:
N/A
Ambiance:
7.5/10
Budget
per Person: $26 - $50; $51 - $80
Pastilla Café
334 Changi Road
Singapore 419808
T: +65 6440 0849
OH:
Tue – Fri: 17.00 –
22.00
Sat & Sun: 17.00 –
22.30
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