Marrakech Grill - Denver

On S Colorado Blvd it's quite easy to find some Middle Eastern cuisine. But, having gone to Jerusalem Restaurant all the time, I had never tried one of the Colorado Blvd places. We tried Marrakech on a weeknight. It was fairly busy and we seated ourselves after a moment of confusion. 


We sat at our table long enough without any service that we had a countdown clock going. If they didn't reach us in the next five minutes, we would get up and leave. We do this a lot, but I think we've only walked out once (that was in Paris, six years ago). Anyway, a server finally showed up and handed us the menus. My wife's menu was blank inside. Nice touch. 


Our order was finally taken and while waiting for it we had a salad, a few pieces of pita bread, and hummus. Marrakech's hummus was impressive, probably the most impressive part of the meal. My chicken shawarma was not very good and without the sauce on the plate, the chicken would have been unbearably dry. The gyros my wife ordered were okay, but what that plate and mine lacked were side portions of hummus. Hummus goes well with everything at a Middle Eastern restaurant, why not serve it with everything? 


I am a fan of this cuisine, but next time I am in search for it I probably won't be going back to Marrakech. I think I am better off trying a new place or going to the old standby. 


Dined March 2, 2012.


Written by B.

Jerusalem Restaurant

I first went to Jerusalem Restaurant, on the corner of Evans and High St, eight years ago. The food and the interior (from the ratty furniture to the heat on so high it feels like a blast of hot air from the oven) hasn't changed one bit. 


On this visit I skipped on my usual meal of falafel and hummus and got a falafel sandwich, which I found to be wrapped in a disappointingly dry bread. The sandwich was full of too many onions and tomatoes. It was quite disappointing. Luckily, I ordered a side of hummus which did come with fresh pita bread, the bread that should have been used with my sandwich, but clearly wasn't. I didn't order the baklava this time, although I do recommend it. 

A staple dish in the Middle East, chicken shawarma, was once ordered by a friend of mine. He is from Israel and he wanted a taste of home, but when the shawarma arrived, he said, "This is not shawarma. This is bad." I later visited him in Israel and we had magnificent feasts of shawarma and many other middle eastern dishes that far surpassed anything from Jerusalem Restaurant. However, most of Jerusalem Restaurant's customers haven't had that experience and so there is nothing to judge the food here against, besides another middle eastern restaurant in Colorado. This is why Jerusalem Restaurant has won a number of awards for being the best middle eastern restaurant in Denver. 


And all that aside, the place remains good enough to keep me coming back. I don't have the same standards as my friend has, even though now I have had the real deal overseas. I'll go back. And, if you've never been, I would definitely recommend a visit. In my experience, you'll have a great meal sticking with hummus, falafel, baklava, and a nice stack of pita bread.


Dined February 9, 2012.


Written by B.


Picture is of the real thing in Nazareth, Israel.