Dining Your guide to eating out in Port Chester, Rye Brook and surrounding areas
Out & About
The aroma of Moroccan cuisine coming to a restaurant near you By Jananne Abel
in this area, it is a great location to open a business.” They started doing renovaver since I noticed the tions in October 2016. “We banner revealing that a totally changed the whole Moroccan restaurant was restaurant,” said Nordine. “It coming to town back in October, looks like now Moroccan atmoI was thrilled. The fact that little sphere. We bought handmade information was available about chandeliers from Morocco. We it added to the intrigue. Now that created one Moroccan lounge in it’s about to open, I’m getting the back of the restaurant for anxious to smell the aroma of private parties.” regional spices wafting from the His friend Doron Sabag, locale and to sample and learn owner and builder/designer at more about Moroccan cuisine. Sound Beach Partners in StamArgana Restaurant & Bar will ford, did the renovations. “We be opening at 325 North Main St. demolished the bar and moved next week, with the grand openThe space at 325 North Main St.—formerly nessa—has been the bar to the left side [of the resing scheduled for Tuesday, Mar. transformed into a Moroccan oasis. A French door has been taurant] and [opened] the wall 21 and the eatery welcoming the added which leads out onto the patio. behind the bar with a big French public the next day. Jananne Abel|Westmore News door to the patio,” said Nordine. Argana is the creation of The patio was lovely when nessa occuMoroccan-born Nordine and Soumia “Mia” “I’m the one I just eat, I don’t cook,” said pied the space, always filled with beautiful Achbania and will be their first restaurant. Nordine during a telephone interview on trees, plants and flowers, as I’m sure it will Nordine has managed many restauMonday, Mar. 13. “I have been only in manbe now that Argana has taken it over. rants, most recently Louie’s in Cos Cob agement.” “Nordine and his wife are good friends and Polpo in Greenwich, the latter for Nordine, in the restaurant business for about 10 years. His wife Mia, the head 18 years, lived in Port Chester for almost six of mine, so I am helping them out,” said Sabag. “I’m helping them get it done. chef, designed the menu and developed the years before moving to Greenwich. Sabag raved about Mia’s cooking. “She is recipes. She will be cooking with a Moroc“This is the first Moroccan restaurant extremely talented and amazingly passioncan chef, known as Chef Ali, who is comwe are opening, probably not the last,” he ate about Moroccan food,” he said. “Please ing up from New York City where he has said. encourage people to go.” worked at four different restaurants. They decided on Moroccan food because “You’re going to love it,” said Nordine “this area of Port Chester and Westchester about the food. “It’s like real, real Morocneeds something different,” he said. “There can cuisine.” The traditional cooking pot are too many Italian, French and Mexican from Morocco called a tajine they imported restaurants. I have to come up with somethrough Canada. thing totally different.” I read that Moroccan food consists of spiced, Since he and his wife are Moroccan, slow-cooked meat dishes simmered in one their Moroccan friends who went to Polpo magical pot: a tajine. The word refers to both the said they should open a Moroccan restauconical-shaped dish and the food that’s inside it, rant. which is usually a blend of sweet and savory flavors. They chose 325 North Main St., the Argana will also serve couscous, the dish Moformer location of nessa, because, said rocco is most known for. In addition, “Morocco was Nordine, “there is not too many [Morococcupied by France, so there is a lot of infusion of can] locations around this area, I know a French cuisine,” said Nordine. The food has been lot of people in this area from Westchester influenced by Spain as well and A sign on the front door at Argana and Greenwich and I’m a “also Jewish cuisine has evolved.” Restaurant & Bar at 325 North Main local guy. So when we found So expect a wide range of flavors. St. says the establishment is hiring nessa closed, we found it was As for any more specifics, we’ll servers, bussers and kitchen staff. Apply a location easy to switch to have to wait and see, but, with the Westmore in person, send a resume to achbani@ Moroccan atmosphere. It is in opening set for next week, fortuarganarestaurantbar.com or call 914a good location on the main nately we won’t be waiting long. 612-4440. Jananne Abel|Westmore News street. There is a lot of traffic
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