Not Found

I’ve wanted to check out Le Club Fez for quite a while now. I’ve been in a drought as far as new restaurants are concerned and I’ve never had Moroccan food before. When the opportunity arose to take a friend out to a new place for her birthday dinner, Fez‘s name quickly rose to the top of our list of possible options. As a side note, the runner up was The Fat Hen on Johns Island, so I expect to get out there fairly soon.

I’m not sure how I had never noticed Fez‘s location before, because I love indie movies, but Fez is located right next to the Terrace Theatre on the Maybank Hwy. on James Island. Strip mall restaurants always seem a bit risky, but Fez is one case where you really need to do your best not to judge the book by its cover. Inside Fez, the atmosphere is great. It’s low lit and intimate. The space is fairly small, but we never felt cramped. This is a perfect place to take a date. I’d recommend making a reservation, though, because the limited amount of seating can make getting a table tricky. As far as pedigree is concerned, the owner of Fez is also behind Taco Boy on Folly, as well as Raval and Monza on King St. John Marshall, the chef from everybody’s favorite Italian restaurant Al Di La was also brought in as a consultant for Fez.

Upon the recommendations of a couple other reviews I’ve read, we decided to start with the Gaufrettes with Aioli. This is basically a fancy way of saying “really awesome potato chips with the world’s best dip.” The chips are house made and look like incredibly thin waffle fries. The chips by themselves were great with a garlicky flavor. They are pretty brittle, but if they break don’t fret. That just gives you more bites to enjoy them. The aioli seems like the fine dining world’s interpretation of French onion dip. Don’t get me wrong though, it is way better than anything you could find at the Harris Teeter. After debating for a while we decided to ask our server (who was excellent) exactly which herbs/spices were used. The dip’s main notes are garlic and lemon, but it also has bits of parsley, cilantro, and tarragon. Regardless of what was in it, it was delicious. I literally was trying to scoop up any remnants that were left with my fork when our server came to take it away. At $5.50, I would highly recommend you start your meal with these, but some of the other options like the Kefta (grilled skewers of spiced veal) and B’stilla (savory pastry with chicken and almonds) also sounded great. If I wasn’t a cheap college student, I would have tried another appetizer.

As for entrees, the menu is split into French and Moroccan sections. The choices are fairly limited, but this seems like the type of place where everything is executed really well, so you should be able to pick anything and be pleased. I chose to go for the Moroccan side and ordered a “tagine” which is a slow cooked stew over cous cous. I chose to get the tagine d’Agneau (lamb), which came with figs, apricots, almonds, and shallots. The tagine is served in a dish like the one seen on the right. When they remove the lid and that first smell hits your nostrils, you will know you’ve made the right choice. It is accompanied by three small Moroccan salads of marinated carrots, cucumber, and eggplant. On the advice of my server I went right ahead and mixed these in with the rest of my plate. The tagine itself was delicious. It was savory and perfectly seasoned. The lamb was tender to the point that it fell apart on my fork. I wish I could tell you exactly what seasonings were used in this, but my palate isn’t quite that developed. Just take my word that it’s awesome. I really enjoyed the almonds in the dish as well. They provided a nice crunch that contrasted the rest of the dish’s texture. The apricots were also a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t sure what I would think of a sweet fruit in a dish like this, but it really worked well with the lamb. The tagine ran me $21 but was well worth the price. Another option on the Moroccan side, which I plan to order next time I’m there, is the tagine de bouef, which is a tagine of beef short ribs braised in red wine with tomatoes, raisins, and cinnamon.

My friend got the Cassoulet from the French side, which the menu describes as a “slow cooked casserole of white beans, duck confit, garlic sausage, and pork shoulder.” Again the meat here was absurdly tender. The duck was great and the sausage had the perfect amount of kick without being too spicy. The white beans also picked up a lot of flavor from the sauce and sort of served as microcosms of the dish as a whole. The Cassoulet ran $18 and she had plenty of leftovers, so this would also be a solid pick.

When it came to service, Fez, again, did a very good job. Our server was attentive, informative, and seemed genuinely interested in making sure we had a good meal. Our food was brought out in a timely manner and they checked on us just enough to make sure we were taken care of without doing it too much and making us feel rushed.

All-in-all, I would recommend Fez to anyone, not just the adventurous among you. Charleston doesn’t have a ton of diversity when it comes to ethnic food, so, when we get a place like Fez that serves a type of cuisine that has never been available here, I think it is important to take advantage of it. I said it before, but it’s a great place to take a date. Expect to drop $25 a person and be totally satisfied with your purchase.

No related posts.