Great spanish food with morocan influences, affordable, wine list
Disadvantages:
Gets very busy, you need to book up a little in advance
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Once you've eaten at Moro once you'll want more I assure you.
Moro is one of the most successful restaurants on Exmouth Market, EC1, London. Its just under 10 years old now and is run by Sam and Sam Clarke, a married couple formerly of the River Cafe. The concept at Moro is spanish & mediteranian food with a morocan infleunce. The couple spent time travelling around Spain and Morocco and I belive have a holiday home in Moroco still so they know a fair bit about the countries and their culinary delights. They seem quite a down to earth pairing and I read an article in the Guardian recently saying they have an allotment somewhere near the site of the olympic developments around Stratford, and they will lose it because of this, and they are protesting about it as they love to grow their own veggies there for the restraunt etc. So no celebrity luvvy chefs at Moro.
The restaurant looks really appealing from the outside. Its paintwork is all done in a sort of deep purple colour with a simple restaurant title painted on the front. At the sides on each wall is a list of the Tapas thats available, most dishes cost around £3. There are about 6 tables outside for people to eat in the fresh air should they choose. Exmouth market has a nice buzzy feel to it and is great for people watching so one of the outside tables would be nice in the summer. When you enter the restaurant which is glass fronted you enter from a little curtained doorway. The main restaurant is quite large, wood flooring etc, has a bar down the left side, tables spread around and down the right side it has comfy green cushioned seating, like you get in Morocco. The kitchen is at the top of the restaurant so you can see the chefs at work behind a stainless steel counter.
You can have a drink at the bar, or eat Tapas up there if you chose. If you've booked you'll be taken to your seats quickly and given menus to look at. As I mentioned they do Tapas but they also serve larger meals too, From their own menu the following delights are listed;
Weekly menu
week ending 1st April 2006
Turkish village soup with cabbage, bread and caraway £5.00
Salt cod croquetas with alioli £6.50
(We recommend a glass of Tio Pepe fino 100ml £3.50)
Pigeon bisteeya with almonds, sugar and cinnamon £6.50
Pan-fried sardines stuffed with potato, cumin, coriander and paprika with tomato sauce £6.50
Calves brains in chermoula with grilled green pepper salad £6.50
* * * * *
Wood roasted Middle White pork with roasted vegetables and quince alioli £16.50
Slow cooked tuna with onion and oloroso sauce and spinach £16.50
(We recommend a glass of Tio Diego amontillado 100ml £4.90)
Wood roasted skate with braised escarole, browned garlic and sherry vinegar £16.50
Wood roasted chicken with slow-cooked celery, preserved lemon and olives £16.50
Charcoal grilled lamb with sprouting broccoli, lentils and new season garlic puree £17.00
Uggah - Persian baked omelette with potato, spinach, saffron and barberries £14.50
* * * * *
Chocolate and apricot tart £5.00
Yoghurt and pistachio cake £5.00
(We recommend a glass of moscatel de la Marina 100ml £3.00)
Malaga raisin ice cream with Pedro Ximenez £5.00
Rosewater and cardamom ice cream £5.00
Zamorano, Picos de Europa and Montenebro cheeses with membrillo £6.50
(We recommend a glass of Don Jose oloroso100ml £4.80)
My experiences of Moro
I have eaten there twice so far, once with my best friend for a nice girly catch up lunch, we had some very nice meze style dishes to start off followed by the charcoal grilled lamb which is fantastic, succulent, juicy with just a hint of spiciness. We had a lovely time, nice red wines etc. Service was a little on the slow side but I think this is more to do with the style of the restaurant than bad service, things arent rushed here by any means.
I then had the fortune to be taken there by a business contact for lunch a month ago, that was very good too. For starters I had an unlevened bread with some beautiful soft cheese, I cant remember the name of it, sorry, but it was like feta but saltier. Very nice. It also came with salad, like frizzy lettece leafs, tomato and peppers. For main course I had lamb again! Sorry I know I should branch out a little but when its that good....this time it came with a yummy spiced cauliflower and green beans and sauteed potatoes. I would have had dessert but had to get back to the office sadly.
The menu at Moro as you will have seen isnt massive, there are a handful of selections at each course, personally I like this as when confronted with a huge list of options I find it harder to choose. They concentrate on making what they do offer really good.
Both times I've eaten there have been during lunch hour so I cant review for the evening dining experience but I dont belive they change the menu at all for the evening session.
In terms of wines, the cheapest begins from £12.50 and goes right up to £180...this restaurant does a lot of sherry too as thats what you should eat with Tapas apparently. The wine menu much more extensive than the food menu and all are designed to match the type of food served at Moro.
I would recommend Moro for couples, groups of friends and families as there really is something for everyone between the tapas and main meals menu.
Other things to note. Moro is now totally non-smoking.
Opening Times
Lunch (Mon-Fri) 12:30-2:30 Lunch (Sat) 12:30-2:30 Dinner (Mon-Sat) 7:00-10:30 Tapas served all day (Mon-Sat)
Location
Can be reached by taking a tube to Angel or Farringdon. As the other reviewer notes, definately worth a trip accross town to check this one out.
More details
Cleanliness
Excellent
Family Friendly
Excellent
Evaluate this review
How helpful would this review be to someone making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
