Moroccan Roll Revitalized Silver Spring Gets ‘Taste’ of Ethnic Restaurant by Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana The revitalization of downtown Silver Spring, Md., has been a long time coming. But the wait has been worth it. The transformation could have gone anywhere from a perilous mega-mall to a clone of Old Town Alexandria, Va., but instead it has developed a unique character all its own, which is still growing in nature and popularity. Silver Spring is one of the few places in the area where you can easily park, even on the weekend, and quickly walk to your destination. We hope it never gets so popular that that changes. But the new Silver Spring is maturing: Initially the first wave of restaurants to move into the sleek new space consisted almost entirely of cor porate chains. Independently owned and ethnic restaurants, however, are springing up now that the area and its popularity are on a roll. On that roll comes a Taste of Morocco, located on the first floor of City Place near the entrance. It is an off-beat addition to the lineup of restaurants in City Place, but certainly not to the new Silver Spring. The ornate entrance and door open onto the bar, beyond which is a sprawling dining room. Although the dining room is comfortably appointed, it lacks some of the intimacy and ambience of other Moroccan restaurants. The walls of the large, irregularly shaped dining room are decorated with faux Moroccan tiles, which nonetheless are still visually appealing in their complex pattern and colors. The recessed ceiling lighting also makes it brighter than the typical dark den-like Moroccan restaurant with rug-draped walls and mountains of pillows. We ordered the walima ($56 for two), which was the most expensive of the pre-fixed meals, consisting of two soups, salads, bastila (or chicken pie), tagines (or Moroccan stews), mint teas, as well as pastries and a fruit basket. One of the openers, a rice, mush-room, corn and raisins dish, was a bit bland. The tomato and cucumber dish was tangy, but the tomatoes were wilted. When the watery margarita ($4.95) arrived, tasting as though it were made from a powdered mix, we feared a gloomy remainder of the evening—but fortunately we were wrong. A platter of warm Moroccan bread with marinated black olives in oil with spices arrived and turned the corner for us, revitalizing the evening. In addition, the wait staff and anyone associated with the restaurant, including the lute player and belly dancer, were nothing less than charming and exceptionally eager to please without being intrusive or fawning. The soups were tasty, especially the harrira ($4.95), which is the national soup made of a tomato base with rice, lentils and chickpeas. The lentil soup ($4.95) with chopped carrots, onion and butternut squash, although blander, had its moments. Another revitalizer was the belly dancer who appeared between the appetizers and entrees, and she was indeed spellbinding—at one point vigorously dancing with a tray of lit candles on her head. Bastila, or chicken pie, raised the bar. The savory dish was encased in a thin, flaky phyllo crust, which included an interior layer of ground nuts and brown sugar, as well as shredded chicken, onions, eggs and ground almonds, with powdered sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on top. Although only one of us is a fan of lamb, we both agreed to try the lamb tagine, which was our hands-down favorite dish. This is what stews are all about, with the sum greater than the parts. The big chunks of lamb were falling-apart tender, and the potatoes, carrots and peas on a bed of couscous created a harmony of flavor. The vegetarian version, although blander, was still good, substituting acorn squash, turnips and chickpeas for the lamb. We have often wondered why so many of the creative nuevelle American chefs in their quest for redefining traditional comfort dishes have not discovered the stew, one of the most traditional, comfortable and ubiquitous dishes in history. The red snapper tagine, called “under the sea,” was also excellent. The fish filet was cooked with chopped carrots, whole green olives, lemon pieces and spices, and topped with sweet onions and raisins. The flaky white meat was tender and redolent with the commingled flavors. Dessert was a traditional one, described as “pastries and a fruit basket.” The pastries were delicious and unusual: One of the dark brown squares was made with ground almonds and was slightly reminiscent of a ginger cookie. Another looked like a crumple of brown shiny ribbon, which was also made from ground nuts but had a strong taste of honey. We hope other non-chain ethnic restaurants follow Taste of Morocco’s footsteps, so we have even more reason to return to Silver Spring. And the parking is a dream. Rachel Hunt and Stephen Qualiana are the restaurant reviewers for The Washington Diplomat. Taste of Morocco City Place Mall 8661 Colesville Rd. Silver Spring, Md. (301) 588-4003 www.tasteofmorocco.net Lunch: 11:30 a.m. - 3 p.m. daily Dinner: 3 - 11 p.m. daily Parking: Plenty of public parking, free after 8 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends Metro: Nearest stop is Silver Spring Dress: Very Casual