Moroccan culture highlights meal at Tangier

BOULDER – We learned a new word the moment we set foot inside Tangier Moroccan Cuisine. “Marhaba – means welcome,´ said owner-chef Khalil Ben Mellah, as we walked into his restaurant. That was just the beginning of Khalil’s (“like Khalil Gibran,” he told me) gracious treatment of his guests.

We were given the option of sitting on well-stuffed floor cushions or in typical Western-style chairs. As we settled in, we noticed the complex Middle Eastern music, the vibrant wall colors, the enticing aroma.

Our waiter answered all our questions about the ingredients and preparation methods of menu items and, after we ordered, washed our hands in rosewater poured from a silver urn. The meal ended as beautifully as it began, with minty tea poured from a lofty height into each of our cups.

If this sounds like just the kind of quiet yet exotic place where you’d like to meet with a client for lunch, you’re out of luck. Tangier is open only for dinner.

“Moroccan cuisine is not a quick deal,” Ben Mellah said. “We want to wash your hands; we want you to enjoy the whole meal, to experience the adventure.” And that can’t be done when people have only 30 minutes, or even 60, to rush through a lunch break. “I want them to relax and hear the music, feel like they are in Morocco, not like they have to go back to work.”

Another complicating factor is the price tag: Saffron and other spices, as well as halal meat (slaughtered in accordance with Arabic law) are very expensive, whether they are sourced here or, as Ben Mellah prefers, imported from Morocco.

“It costs too much to do it for lunch,” he acknowledged. Instead, Tangier offers dinner guests the Diafa, a five-course meal for two. “It’s an introductory dinner to Moroccan food – it has the best that we can offer. … If you (were to) do it item by item, it would cost almost $90. We do it for $60.”

Our party of three ordered the Diafa as well as a couscous dish, and none of us left hungry. (Diners are also welcome to order a la carte.) We all agreed that the highlight of the meal was the chicken bastilla, a sweet-and-savory appetizer made with phyllo dough, shredded chicken, cinnamon and roasted almonds and dusted with confectioners’ sugar. The Diafa also came with a choice of soup (we went with our waiter’s recommendation and got the lentil-based harira), a sampling of salads, a lamb tagine served with prunes, and a chicken tagine with preserved lemons and kalamata olives. Small pieces of baklava came with the tea.

Though Ben Mellah’s skill with Moroccan cuisine is apparent (though perhaps somewhat restrained for American palates), he honed his craft in French and other fine-dining restaurants while putting himself through CU-Denver’s electrical engineering program in the late ’80s. He claims the now-defunct La Coupole, the Brown Palace and the Denver Country Club on his résumé, in addition to his work designing fiberoptic systems.

“I always loved to cook, and I always used to invite friends to my home and cook for them, and I always wished to open my own restaurant.” So, in June, he did just that.

Ben Mellah is willing to accommodate special requests. One time, he recalls, a customer came in with a Chinese zucchini and wanted it incorporated into a dish; Ben Mellah was happy to comply. “If you get tired of what’s on the menu, let me know, and I will make something special for you.”

Ben Mellah’s hospitality extends far beyond food.

 “We have students from elementary and high school come in and bring their families when they have to do a report. I give them all the materials I can to make the paper easier for them,” he said. “If people are going to Morocco, sometimes I give them phone numbers of hotels or even of my family.” He keeps books on hand to give would-be tourists the inside scoop on the best places to visit, and when and how to get there.

“I am happy to be able to open a Moroccan restaurant to share my culture with the Boulder community, and to share my food and my experience,” he said. “I want my guests to come happy and leave happier.”

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