We only tried one item from Taste of Marrakesh at last year’s Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival (spiced lamb kebab with vegetable couscous salad), it was pretty pitiful and disappointing because we typically LOVE lamb. We were so disappointed, that we just didn’t even try the booth during the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival in 2013.
Spiced Lamb Kebab and Couscous (Taste of Marrakesh, 2013 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival)
Also, we now have access to true homemade Moroccan cooking a few times a year and we’ve become more knowledgeable about what good Moroccan food tastes like – PLUS our experiences at Spice Road Table recently (yes, there are blog posts in the hopper for Spice Road Table) have been excellent. So when Nabil (Big Nabil that is, there are two servers at Spice Road Table named Nabil and we call them Big Nabil and Smaller Nabil) told us that the Lamb Brewat Roll was good, we decided to give it another try.
so, Nick went out to the Outdoor Kitchen to get two lamb rolls (one for us to share and one to give Nabil) and I got one of the standing bar tables inside Spice Road Table bar.
Hand of Fatima display at Spice Road Table (these emblems ward off bad luck)
I asked the bartender, Youseff, which wine he would recommend with the lamb and prune roll. He said the Guerrouane Rouge (this was the possible pairing at the Taste of Marrakesh Outdoor Kitchen) although he prefers white wine… In another example of how helpful the staff is at SRT, he gave me a small taste to ensure that I liked the wine.
Lamb Brewat Roll
At first glance, the sauce had been drizzled over the top of the roll and had settled into the layers of pastry… Surprisingly, this didn’t cause the pastry to become soggy, it remained crispy.
Interior of lamb roll
We thought that the lamb was a bit dry, but the flavor was rich and lamb-y. The wine went well with the meat, the tannins in the wine cut the richness of the lamb. I thought that the prunes were barely noticeable and Nick expected a lamb roll served with puréed prunes saucing it and sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds (we didn’t detect any sesame at all).
When we saw (big) Nabil, we offered him the second lamb roll – he smiled and said thank you but insisted that we enjoy it. So, we asked him “what wine would you drink with this?” He recommended the Bodegas Zerran red and when Nick went to the bar to get it, Youseff gave him a taste of the Ksara Reserve Du Couvent (Spain) [so, of course, we got a glass of this too].
more Lamb Brewat Roll
We thought that the Bodegas Zerran was a much better pairing, it had Pinot Noir attributes. In the end, we thought it was the best pairing with the lamb roll. The Ksara Reserve Du Couvent wasn’t bad, but it didn’t pair with the richness of the lamb as well. Nick wants to see how it pairs with the shrimp dish served at SRT on another visit.
A few notes:
We liked the lamb roll, but our friend Mason’s Lamb with Prunes and Nuts is better; probably because it’s very fatty and unctuous. The lamb brewat roll was as rich or as heavy… this is a win for the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival.
While standing at the bar in SRT we had a chance to really observe the staff, they hustle! That’s so impressive, they moved about like a well oiled machine.
We can’t help but wish that Tutto Gusto had stuck with their original purpose – being a tapas wine bar. It’s current incarnation where they serve meals from Tutto Italia and the prices have crept up so much for simple cheese samples ($9 for each sample and they aren’t that big) and salads… sigh, just a bit disappointing.
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Update!!!
We went back to Taste of Marrakesh on April 7 and had another Brewat Lamb Roll. We’re happy to report that this one was more “lamb-y” that the first two. It seems to us that ALL of the prune flavor is in the sauce (and it’s quite sweet). While we wouldn’t tell anyone to NOT get this, we certainly wouldn’t encourage anyone to run right over to Epcot and get it.
We’ve been much more pleased with the food offerings at Spice Road Table (and the service!)
