Seven courses of awesomeness.

Marrakesh lived up to every outrageous, outlandish statement we had heard about it.  The atmosphere was incredible, the food was even better.  To set the scene, Stacey, Sona, Virginia, and I headed off in our own cab to meet the others at the restaurant.  As if an omen of the wonderful night to come, I found a heads up penny on our way out, and saw a spectacular sunset as we drove through the streets of Philly.

Part of the incredible-ness of Marrakesh is that it is tucked in an unassuming alley off of South Street.  Our directions were literally to look for the green awning and knock on the door.  And so we did, of course, eagerly anticipating the magic that awaited us.

The woman who opened the door led us past tables surrounded by carpets, pillows, and wonderful food, up a tiny staircase to a room where the rest of our group was waiting.  Marrakesh is one of Philly's many BYO's, meaning you can bring your own beverage of choice.  We all chipped in and brought various wines for the night to enjoy during the dinner.  

We all crowded inside what I can best describe as a big, round booth (think about a booth sized for about twenty people) with tapestries and pillows and dark lighting until the last stragglers of our group arrived. Once our group had all gotten to the restaurant, about seven of us split off to a smaller booth behind the big booth (but still in the same room) to make room for all of the food to come.  Here's our menu:

The Three-Salad Platter- Cooked Eggplants in Tomato Sauce, Cucumbers and Bell Peppers in Mediterranean Seasoning, Oasis Carrots with Cucumber.

The B’stella- Layered pie with chicken, assorted nuts, almonds, eggs, parsley and onions, topped with confection sugar and traced with cinnamon

The vegetarian version of this was made with egg instead of chicken, although I'm pretty sure that it was the same spices.  It was a surprisingly delicious mix of savory and sweet (literally, powdered sugar on top!).

Main Dishes

Chicken with Lemon and Olive & Spicy Chicken in Cumin Sauce

The main dish for the vegetarians was a spinach pastry thing which was ALSO incredible--a close second to the eggplant dish, in my opinion. 

Second Main Course

Tajne of Lamb with Almonds and Honey & Lamb with Chick Peas and Onions

I can't remember the vegetarian option for this.  But I promise it was incredible.

Third Main Course

Couscous Grand Atlas Topped with Vegetables, Chick Peas and Raisins

Desserts: 

Basket of Fresh Fruits, Hot Mint Tea with Moroccan Pastries

We ate everything with our fingers, using the bread (which was like pita bread) to grab meats or soak up the delicious sauces.  My favorite by far was the eggplant in the 3-salad dish.  It almost tasted like barbecue sauce with a twist.  Holy deliciousness, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

And the baklava.  Ohhhh the baklava.  Holy honey and pastry deliciousness.  I actually ate TWO AND A HALF of these huge pastries, which were dripping with sugary honey.  While some people just couldn't handle all the sweet, I feel like these were made for me.

(I also felt like I was going into a food and wine coma after this incredible meal, but that's the price you pay for such a glorious, out of body experience, right?)