Transport yourself to a Moroccan market experience at Souk Medina, where belly dancers, fresh mint tea and platters of sweetly spiced tagine await.

The Venue
Under the cobbled streets of Seven Dials in Covent Garden, you wouldn’t know there is a bustling Moroccan, medina-style restaurant. Laid out like a North African market or souk, the restaurant is composed of winding corridors, small staircases and private rooms that hide low tables and comfortable sofas. The clay-tiled floor and cream walls off-set the ornate rugs, dark wooden arch ways and stain glass lamps, creating the intimate feel of a desert palace.

The Atmosphere
With all the nooks and crannies, you can either seclude yourself in a private space for two or hire out a room for a large group. The vibe is relaxed, with a tinge of excitement rippling through the archways every time a table receives their next impressive platter of food. The service is quick and friendly.

The Food
Souk serves a mixture of traditional Moroccan and North African cuisine. The three course mezze set menu (£19.95) is the best option, where you can sample a generous range of the restaurant’s signature dishes. After a mottled history of invasion and influence from Europe and the Middle East, Moroccan cuisine is a blend of Berber, Spanish and African cultures. Food here is served in the traditional way, in earthenware dishes or on impressive silvered platters.

A starter of vine leaves and hummus comes with green salad and warm pitta bread. The hummus is perhaps a little grainy and could do with a touch more lemon or garlic. In a lamb sausage stew with potatoes, the sausage is tender and deeply flavoured with warm, earthy spices in a tomato based sauce. The second course showcases four tagines, chicken with saffron, spinach and feta, lamb with prunes, and a chickpea tagine. The lamb and the chickpea tagine are both particularly good; the sticky sweetness of the prunes is a real treat with the chunks of lamb, and the chickpea tagine has a surprising kick of harissa mellowed with cumin spice. A mound of couscous stands in the middle of the platter, drizzled in fragrant olive oil with a scattering of fresh parsley. The set menu also includes dessert and tea. The baklava are not as cloying as this sweet pastry can sometimes be, and they slip down a treat with a pot of fresh mint tea. The mezze menu is also a great option for groups, as all dishes are freely replenished on request.

The Drink
Souk Medina has an eclectic take on the usual cocktail favourites (£6.50). The Sahara cocktail continues the North African tradition of using dried fruits for flavour, as rum is muddled with dates, ginger, vanilla and lime. The Souk cocktail is also sweet and fragrant, made with vodka, figs, mint and rose water. They also serve coffee liqueurs (£4.95), fruit juices (£2.25) and fresh teas (£2.25).

The Last Word
Souk Medina is about the experience as well as the food. With evocative décor and subtly spiced cuisine, it’s an oasis of calm in the desert of metropolis.

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