Darna

NileGuide Expert tip:

Reservations are a must.

Description:

• The owner of Darna, a successful Jerusalem restaurateur who came to Israel from Morocco as a youth, decided to create a fabulous, authentic Moroccan restaurant after he revisited North Africa in the early 1990s and was dazzled by the beauty of his one-time homeland. Moroccan designers and craftsmen were brought to Jerusalem to create just the right setting, and top chefs were imported to supervise the intricacies of classic Moroccan cuisine prepared within the bounds of kashrut. The result is a memorable place that delights the eye and the taste buds without being hokey or touristy. The dechicha (spiced barley and lamb soup served with dates) and the meze of Moroccan salads are wonderful and very reasonably priced, as is the pastilla, a sweet phyllo pie traditionally made of pigeon, but (thankfully) done here with Cornish hen. These courses alone would make a fine light dinner, but for main courses, the couscous dishes and the tagines (lamb or chicken cooked with dried fruits or vegetables in covered clay pots) are my favorites, as is the Safi-style sea bream. There are also unusual specialties such as a rich but light tagine of brains with lemon, saffron, and egg. Service is in a graceful Moroccan style, and carefully chosen background music seems to echo the medinas of Fez and Marrakech. For two people, soups, the meze, and one main course or one set menu plus a main course could be adequate. This glatt kosher restaurant is one of the best dining experiences in Israel.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Highly Recommended 2010