Moro

dafinki

1st October 2009

0 found this helpful

Just thought I'd mention the Moro stall on Exmouth market which is there at lunchtimes – brilliant! Lunch for £5, today it was flatbread topped with couscous, free range chicken, lentils, aubergines and salad with a beetroot dressing. Last week it was flatbread with lamb and couscous with a yoghurt dressing...delicious!

MoRaja

Great tasting food 5th November 2008

2 found this helpful

I love going to Moro. Whilst working in the area I would visit at least once a month for a treat. The food, especially the fish dishes are full of flavour and perfectly cooked. It can be very noisy when busy, so not always the best place to go if you want a serious conversation over dinner/lunch.

mazphd

Why wait until toMOROw? 8th October 2008

6 found this helpful

It is not often that one comes across a restaurant that has style, vibe and some seriously fabulous food. I have been lucky enough to not only dine , but also to experience the wine here, and I intend to develop this very complimentary and devastingly evocative relationship some more.

On my visit, despite being full to bursting and busy every member of staff was attentive, helpful and catchingly perky! Now my experience may have been coloured by the delightful company for the evening (a perceptive, witty and charming dining companion) but Moro also holds all these qualities on its own just on the vibe alone.

For some reason I skipped the Tapas and went straight for the weekly menu, a sardine related dish full of spice, and just the right mix of olive oil and fennel seeds. Simplicity in itself. Now the dining was divine, but better was the wine, and I heartidly recommend, the Ontañon, Gran Reserva a 2001 Spanish Rioja. On the side of 'pricey' at nearly £50 a bottle, but mmm so sumptuous.

It has been a while since I've had such great service (especially in the UK!) and wonderful food, and reading the other reviews it seems Moro gets this balance right at least 90% of the time. I'm hoping for those disappointed diners they will return and be charmed in the same way I have been.

My own intention is to revisit and take advantage of the tapas, and moment with a suitably charming dining partner. Oh and to remember to leave room for dessert.

Lacrimosa at 14/10/08

You had a perceptive, witty and charming dining companion? NOT FAIR! I want one.

That aside, I've not been to Moro for years, and keep meaning to go back. One day...

mazphd at 15/10/08

just take that witty, charming dining companion with you!

:-)

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chrisp

Morose 8th October 2008

3 found this helpful

Well, I'm sorry to go against the grain of reviews on this site, but I had a very disappointing experience here last weekend.

Arriving 20 mins too early for the evening menu (which was sold out anyway for some unfathomable reason), we decided to fill up on a selection of tapas and a glass of sherry. The tapas was dull - no better than from Cafe Kick across the road - with a small plate of cold and soggy Pimentos de Padron and Boquerones that had clearly just been dumped out of a jar.

But the real slap in the face came in the form of a £4 thimble-sized glass of Tio Pepe Sherry. The measure can't have been more than 100ml, and I know for a fact you can get a whole bottle of the stuff from Waitrose for about £8. A violation.

This highlights a wider problem with restaurants serving liquids out of their comfort zone. It's the same reason why a measure of Baileys (20%) costs the same as vodka (40%) in the pub and why you can happily buy shots of tequila for £1 each but ask for a brandy and you're given just about enough to coat the bottom of a tumbler for £3.50 (yes, most pubs have a perfectly good selection of brandy glasses - but when was the last time you saw one used?).

Sherry is not a spirit. In fact, at 15% it's about the in terms of alcohol content as most Riojas. The sooner these pretentious tapas places realise it the better, and one can only hope that once the credit crunch bites it will sort out the places that demand unquestioning respect from their customers from those that actually earn it.

mazphd at 08/10/08

oh no, how dare Moro have let you down. Boo! A desquietening tapas experience, there's nothing worse. sob.

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Litro_K

Very Mor-ish 11th September 2008

1 found this helpful

I'd been waiting years to try our Moro, upon countless recomendations, and finally had an excuse last Friday. Well, three, actually - a birthday, an engagement, and a leaving party, all in one. And boy, was it worth the wait.

I had booked well in advance for a table of 14, which was situated at the back of the restaurant, in a semi-private corner. In the end we had to book for 16 and they happily agreed. The staff were always lovely and helpful, whether on the phone or in person, and they took no massive deposit from my credit card, foisted no set menus on us, and we had one lovely waitress all to ourselves for the night, who coped very well with having to take orders for 16 over three courses without shouting herself hoarse!

As for the food? It was completely out of this world. All the meat tasted like each animal had lived the best life possible, if you know what I mean. It was all tender, succulent, well-seasoned, and – well - moreish. Wines chosen at random from the list were wonderful; desserts were passed around and slathered over, everyone shared their food and so many noises of ecstasy came from various corners of the table that I stopped for a moment, feeling truly happy, and thought: this is really what eating out is all about. Five stars.

kerry_r

too noisy 15th June 2008

1 found this helpful

love the food but it's just so noisy that it's impossible to speak or have a conversation. that's what spanish tapas and the like is about--food, sherry and conversation.

but alas just not possible at moro. shame!

de_uk

Exmouth market classic 10th June 2008

1 found this helpful

Last time I was in Exmouth Market, New Labour were a new force and Moro's proximity to The Guardian gave it an extra buzz.

The interior is still sparse and open, with a visible kitchen. The menu (no specials) was varied. I would usually wait for a Chinese meal before going for a pork dish, and I was a little surprised to see Middle White Pork but I enjoyed it with relish. The staff were relaxed and friendly despite our late sitting - that is, late for Britain.

I looked longingly at the chocloate tart but had no room.

Always a plus point when the house red is a fully flavoured wine - no real need to work the list.

dafinki

Fabulous place 21st May 2008

0 found this helpful

One of my favourites.

gastro1

Morish 3rd March 2008

1 found this helpful

A really great restaurant.

Hats off to Sam and Sam.

Serious research , great ingredients and fantastic food beautifully executed covering recipes from southern Spain to Syria via North Africa.

Moro is an institution.

artecmouse

Superb 13th December 2007

3 found this helpful

Probably the best restaurant I've eaten at for food, service, wine, atmosphere and value for money. It's a bit cramped, but that's part of its canteen style. All the staff seem to thrive on hard graft and there seems to be a real passion for the place and its food/wine/sherry. All courses were brilliant, which is so refreshing as so many restaurants get starters and desserts right and fall down on the mains. We dined on Saturday evening. A group of 4. Aperitifs, wine, 3 courses £45pp. Absolute bargain. Book well in advance. It's worth the wait.