Afous

Four of us dined at this delightful restaurant with gorgeous water views, a lovely, relaxed ambience and traditional touches. The owner, Omar, is really hands-on, and explained anything we wanted to know, and the waiters are quick, efficient and friendly. The shape of the restaurant is such that if you get a window seat (looking in the direction of Chinaman's Beach), it's not at all noisy, even when the place is packed. It's a colourful spot, with a feature stained glass lantern as you walk up the stairs, ornate wine and drinking glasses and tableware, and hues of Moroccan blues and oranges on the walls.

We shared some starters (tapas), which were all very tasty - B'stilla Fingers, Carrot salad marinated in paprika and lemon dressing, Moorish pan-fried sardines served with Moroccan tomato salsa, lamb back strap marinated in cumin, paprika, garlic, extra-virgin olive oil and herbs, and some North African Zaater bread. For main, I had the lamb merguez with minted yoghurt which was delicious - very fragrant. The others had the slow-cooked sweet lamb, Barramundi fillet with fennel & orange salad, and the seafood Bastilla cooked in Moorish spices (too fishy for me, but the person who ordered it loved it). All the meals were delicately flavoured and really tasty.

I decided to try the Moroccan coffee, which is poured by Omar in a very interesting, traditional way. Not really my thing, though - I found the cloves a bit overpowering. I think it's an acquired taste. The mint tea was also served in a traditional way (great co-ordination skills to pour from such a height!) - and this was more to my liking.

This spot is special. The views, the service, the food and the value. We had a most enjoyable evening and will certainly be back for more.