By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter
Morocco, especially Casablanca, is one of those exotic places that most people dream of visiting some day. But the reality is that it's far away, and expensive to get there.
People interested in discovering the taste of Moroccan cuisine don't have to hop on a plane to the North African country; they just need to head over to Itaewon.
La Vie, which opened last December, serves authentic Moroccan food, such as "tagine," "couscous" and "bastilla." The restaurant's owner Abdellah Bjaoui raved about his country's unique cuisine, describing the flavorful stews, steamed vegetables and, of course, couscous.
``You can't imagine any Moroccan who does not eat couscous,'' Bjaoui told The Korea Times.
Couscous, a dish with steamed wheat granules, looks easy enough to cook but many restaurants serve it as gritty and sticky.
At La Vie, the couscous is cooked to perfection. The wheat grains were surprisingly light and did not stick to each other, which Bjaoui attributes to a ``secret'' ingredient. Couscous Royal is served with potatoes, carrots, peas, olives, beans, onions, cabbage, turnips and lamb (8,000 won for a small portion, 13,000 won for a large). The couscous went very well with the different kinds of vegetables.
Tagine, a slow-cooked stew, is another famous Moroccan dish. Diners have a choice of lamb, chicken, dried fruits or minced meat tagine. The lamb in the tagine with potatoes, carrots, peas, olives, beans and onions was very soft and tender. The sauce looked a tad oily, but it was very good and flavored with different spices.
The vegetables, especially the carrots and potatoes, have a beautiful color when served with the tagine and couscous. Bjaoui attributed this to the saffron from Morocco.
Another stand-out dish at La Vie is the "kofta, or minced meat balls with tomato sauce served with an egg (9,000 won for small, 12,000 for large). It might look like ordinary meatballs, except it has a distinct, well-spiced flavor. The addictive sweet-spicy tomato sauce is excellent for being sopped up with the freshly made bread. The kofta was an instant favorite.
With its exotic interior and music filling the air, La Vie transports diners to the world of Moroccan food. The dishes are served in colorfully designed traditional Moroccan pots, adding to the restaurant's charm.
La Vie's menu is fairly extensive, and we would love to go back to try the bastilla, or dumplings, and the ``harrira,'' or hearty soup with meat, chickpeas, lentils and macaroni.
Call (070) 8159-4924 or visit https://blog.naver.com/abho2000. To get there, get off at Itaewon Station line 6 exit 4, immediately turn left and go straight. Turn right at the first corner, and walk about 100 meters, and you'll find La Vie on the second floor of the building next to Irish bar Wolfhound.