Aziza
Gin – Mango, Coconut Water, Basil Seeds
Spreads – Chickpea, Yogurt-Salmon Roe, Piquillo-Almond, Flatbread
Cheese – Pan Forte, Tomato Jam, Rhubarb, Walnut, Cracker
Beet, Goat Milk, Honey Tuille, Onion, Jalapeno, Pistachio, Flatbread
Duck Confit Basteeya, Raisin, Almond
Dorade, Kumquat, Velvet Pioppini Mushroom, Fennel, Almond
Duck, Potato, Chard, Smoked Date, Duck Liver, Granola
Lamb Loin and Belly, Eggplant, Radish, Meyer Lemon, Apricot
Iced Americano
Strawberry, Puff Pastry, Cashew, Preserved Lemon Ice Cream
Black Currant Curd, Vanilla, Fennel Meringue, Almond-Hazelnut Sable
Almond-Honey Semifreddo, Rhubarb, Hibiscus
Green Tea Cake, English Pea Mousse, Cherry, Gingersnap
Caramelized Chocolate Mousse, Sorbet, Chai Milk Jam, Coconut
Grapefruit Pepper Gelee, Chocolate Lavender
A recurrent Michelin Star awardee and favorite of local critics and friends I entered Aziza as my last dinner in San Francisco with a bit of trepidation given my lack of familiarity with Moroccan cuisine and some recent reports that the restaurant had started resting on its laurels, the former something that would prove no issue at all while the later only manifested in a bit of condescending and harried service after my friend and I requested to be moved from the dark, dank, and stagnant back room to the more interesting and temperature appropriate main dining area up front. Featuring the cuisine of self-trained chef Mourad Lahlou and the pastries of Melissa Chou in a dining room I can only describe as ‘heavy’ the decision of the evening was whether to pursue the tasting menu or to order a la carte and with both my friend and I happy to share we inevitably decided to go a la carte as the choice allotted for more varied dishes and desserts, though unfortunately the restaurant was inflexible to allowing us to even order a single tasting menu item a la carte. Focusing first on the cocktails, an interesting selection focusing on individual spirits presented in one of three variations I quite enjoyed the tropical interpretation of gin and moving on to appetizers both the spreads and the cheese were rather straight forward while the beets proved dynamic, balanced, and truly interesting in the interaction of sweet, heat, and creamy all in the same plate. Unable to resist the signature Basteeya there is a definite reason this sweet/savory disk has become the restaurant’s signature and with large portions of the duck, dorade, and lamb all beautifully prepared with touches of sweet and acid playing foil to the proteins we were both impressed by each. Having heard that desserts in the restaurant were not to be missed the decision was made to order one of each and true to the word all were texturally brilliant and not overly sweet – the currant and green tea options actually bordering on savory, the fennel meringues actually too much so in my opinion though my friend felt differently and enjoyed all the desserts but the Strawberry which we both felt was simply run-of-the-mill compared to the others. A really good meal with the total bill tallying just a shade over $100/pp I cannot say I’ve had a lot of experience with Moroccan food, but chef Lahlou’s cuisine has definitely made me wish to remedy that.