Rockin' the Kasbah for Lunch

The Mister and I have always wanted to try dining at Kasbah ever since it opened a few years back and after we'd heard and read so much about their flavorful tagines and interesting Moroccan food. But since for the past few summers, we had been visiting Boracay with the rest of my family (rest of the family being my sisters, my dad and my mom), we had to keep giving Kasbah a miss since my folks aren't exactly the adventurous types when it comes to food and have always been skeptical about our food and restaurant choices (especially after a near-disaster birthday dinner I insisted to have at Bollywood in Greenbelt a few years ago).

When we booked this visit though (initially just for the Mister, the Little Boy and I), we knew we would finally have a chance to dine at Kasbah this time! And after my mom decided to come along, we immediately gave her a heads up and told her that it was set: we were eating at Kasbah, no matter what.

So one rainy afternoon, we finally found the perfect opportunity to persuade my mom to let us treat her to a lunch at nearby Kasbah. She didn't have a choice really. It was still drizzling a bit and we were all too lazy to go to D'Mall or anywhere else for lunch so Kasbah, which was just next door to Discovery Shores, was perfect!

They had the usual bamboo scaffolding+plastic sheets barrier set up right in front so we weren't able to enjoy our meal on the couches they had right on the beach nor did we get a very good view of the sea while we had our lunch, so that was a bummer! And when we got inside, most of the chairs were still wet from the rain (the place is really small), a few chairs & tables were overturned, and there was hardly anyone there, we weren't sure if they were actually open!

We had to wait a few more minutes before somebody actually noticed us and gave us a table inside. But once we were seated, all the bright pinks, blues, yellows and purples cheered us right up and got us excited for what would be an interesting Moroccan lunch.

We ordered the Tangier Calamares (P355), exquisitely stuffed squid with a mixture of garlic herbed rice in a piquant tomato sauce -- as described in their menu, and it was exactly what we got. Four medium-sized squid stuffed with herbed garlic rice; a simple dish but the spicy tomato-based sauce made it a winner!

It was meant to be an appetizer but could have easily been a good entree, too! This was actually my favorite dish out of everything we ordered!

For Mother, we played it safe and ordered Chicken Brochette (P300) and asked if we could have it cooked with as little spice as possible. Boo. :(

On their website & menu, it says that brochettes are basically Moroccan Meat Skewers -- Morocco is renowned for its street stall food of savoury skewers seasoned with cumin, coriander, lemon, garlic and black pepper served with chermoula or harissa dip. Succulently tender. Too bad we had to request for it not to be too spicy! While I don't exactly know just how much spices and flavors they had to leave out, the chicken was actually still pretty yummy! In fact, Mother loved it so much, she swears she'll help us drag the rest of the family for a meal at Kasbah next time we're in Boracay! Yay!

And then we had to get a traditional Moroccan tagine, of course! Especially after seeing all the bright, colorful tagines displayed all around the place. Again, according to their website, a tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish combining the most exquisite ingredients slowly cooked to enhance the flavors, the conical shaped lid ensures that the dish is kept moist and enthused with the flavour and aroma of the spices.

We wanted to try the Seafood Saffron Tagine (Solo P425; To Share P810) that we had heard so much about but oddly enough, they were out of seafood. :s So we went with the Lamb Tagine with prunes, hard-boiled eggs, honey and almonds (Solo P445; To Share P850) instead.

The flavors were great! The honey and the prunes had imparted a sweet taste that perfectly complemented the gamey taste and the super tender meat of the lamb. The only thing was, it was barely warm when it was served to us so it took away from what would've been a perfect dish. :( Nevertheless, it was still pretty good!

The tagine came with basmati rice, but we ordered an extra plate of couscous just for good measure and to complete the whole Moroccan meal!

Overall, our lunch at Kasbah was great! The hearty, spiced meals paired with our fresh fruit shakes was just perfect for a rainy day at the beach.

Though, I would have to say that Kasbah doesn't look too great during the daytime especially when the couches out front are all covered and I would imagine a dinner experience at Kasbah would've been a lot better. :)

The best part of the meal? We dined on a Tuesday and they had just launched their Toss-Up Tuesdays where if you win in a heads or tails coin toss-up, you actually get 50% off on your food! And, we won!!! Yay!! So we paid just half for a meal which would've otherwise cost us a lot (prices are a bit steep even for Boracay standards though I would have to say the food was worth it!).

The only negative part about this whole experience is how badly we've been craving for more tagines and Moroccan food ever since, knowing we would have to wait until our next Boracay trip for it! :'(