PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAIt�s dark and mysterious inside, with star-plays of lights on the walls and ceiling along with some Middle Eastern pottery on display. The restaurant�s decor is as sophisticated and clever as its name, which is a play on baba ganoush, the traditional Middle Eastern dip made from garlicky eggplant puree. However there�s nothing traditional about the food here, which takes Middle Eastern ideas and techniques and shakes them into modern life. This may have something to do with Geoff Malouf�s brother, the noted chef and author Greg Malouf, who had a hand in establishing the restaurant�s first menu.
Since then, the restaurant has made it on its own. The cooking style is distinctive, and includes a range of aromatic and spicy flavours that acknowledge the history of Arab food over the centuries. The Moors were in Spain for hundreds of years, so there might be paella somewhere on the menu � in this case, made with roasted rabbit. The menu also includes very un-Moorish pork, perhaps less strange when you consider that there are people in the Middle East who eat it, and there are definitely plenty of Aussies who love their swine. Order a couple of dishes to share, like the brilliant grilled quail on Moroccan carrot salad, or the very spicy goat kofta. The chef prefers to undercook rather than overcook fish and meat, so if you like your quail and fish well done, you�d best make a point of saying so. Desserts are frankly gorgeous. The wine list is reasonably small but well chosen, and if you want champagne to celebrate, it�s very well priced. On Fridays and Saturdays, for groups of more than seven, the banquet menu is obligatory, and larger groups are likely to be upstairs.
Rita Erlich