Sahara Moroccan Restaurant

Don’t blink! It is too easy to walk straight past the inconspicuous magic door that leads upwards to (much) deliciousness high above Swanston Street in Melbourne! Sahara’s Moroccan and Northern African cuisine is served amongst gorgeous tapestries, mirrors, stained-glass and lanterns on three levels. Overlooking the State Library, it feels tucked away but is really at the centre of everything at the same time. We only went to ‘the kitchen’ this time but look forward to trying out ‘the bar’ and ‘the rooftop’ on future occasions. The food was certainly amazing enough to ensure that we’ll be back!

The lights were low and atmospheric but we did our best to snap some quick photos of these dishes which impressed us so much! The Harissa Prawns were fulsome, impressive units chargrilled with red chilli and caraway and served up with a very tasty lime dipping sauce. However, it was the Lamb Tagine which really made us drool! It was braised with paprika, cumin, ginger and garlic, and the texture was utterly “melt-in-your-mouth”. The flavours of tomatoes, prunes, apricots and green olives blended sublimely with the fresh yogurt. This incredible dish was garnished with toasted nuts and little heavenly bursts of pomegranate. We cannot recommend this dish highly enough!

We also enjoyed the sweet desert platter which included baklava, chocolate, fairy-floss and fruit. It was tricky capture much of the detail on the menu without using an atmosphere-destroying flash but you can view a full copy of all the tasty goodies here. Unfortunately we can’t find the dessert menu online so you’ll just have to trust us that it was great too! What would you choose to order for a dinner at this Moroccan restaurant?