Tanjia

Delicious food. Comfortable seating. Attentive service.
Pro order: start with Harira soup and get a Tagine. Dip bread in the soup. Grab some mint tea and ask for them to make it sweet. Authentic-​style.

I’ve been to Tanjia twice. The first time it was nearly empty. The food was not overwhelming, but was tasty and satisfying. I’m a big fan of the honey and almond braised lamb dish. The couscous is perfectly cooked, moist and surprisingly flavorful.
We went again on Valentines day, which brought a slew of service challenges that I don’t think the restaurant was really up for handling (especially since there’s usually only a couple tables of people in there at any given time). Long waits, forgotten orders, and a little attitude about the mandatory participation of the entire table for the prix-​fixe menu even though there wasn’t exactly anyone else waiting for our table. To their credit, it was Valentines day, which isn’t a realistic barometer of performance, and they were certainly scrambling to try to pull it off.
At the very least, Tanjia has value as being the only Moroccan place around, and the food is decent.

This review is based solely on their Valentine’s day menu. We showed up to Tanjia with a reservation, and were promptly greeted by the hostess. She told us it would be a few minutes before a table would be cleared. No problem, my girlfriend ordered a white sangria while we waited. We took this opportunity to look over the menu, a prix fixe Valentine’s day menu.
Once we were seated, our server gave us some time to look over the menu while we took in the vibe. The belly dancer was there for 3 songs, and really woke up the whole place. We ordered a vegetarian and chicken pastilla, a phyllo purse stuffed with chicken and sprinkled with lots of powdered sugar. For a main dish I ordered a tagine chicken dish with olives and perserved lemons. The chicken was succulent, and the olives provided just a briney touch that I love in food. The dessert was baklava w ice cream, and the ice cream was not too sweet.
Overall, we had a great experience! It was nice to experience a new culture via there cuisine. The other reviewer that trashed this restaurant for the Valentine’s day experience is being harsh. What he described as mild salsa in the shared appetizer was a tasty stewed tomato in dry herbs, and the cucumbers were light and delicious.

Where do I even begin. In short, it was a terrible experience on Valentine’s Day no less. Let’s start with the service. I had reservations at 6pm almost right after they opened at 5:30pm. We were the second couple to arrive. We were seated promptly but this is where they started to screw up. We were asked if we’d like anything to drink and I got a tea and my girlfriend a glass of wine. A few minutes went by and a couple sat next to us. They offered them complimentary sparkling wine and choice of tap or mineral water. Wait, what? There’s nothing worse than when you’re not offered the same service as someone else. We decided that we would just get the sparkling wine at the end with our dessert.
The menu was fairly straight forward — appetizer (salad), first (vegetarian or chicken pastilla), second, and dessert. We both chose the salmon entrée and a vegetarian pastilla, and chicken pastilla as the first.
This is where it gets weird. For the salad even though it looks like you would each receive one, it was shared for both. I get that on this ‘holiday’ the men get shafted with the price of dinner but if it was written on the menu that it would be a shared salad I would let it slide. The salad consisted of some diced up carrots, cucumber, a tomato purée of sorts (think mild salsa) and eggplant with ONE leaf of romain lettuce.
Lets move on to the first course. It was this over the top powdered sugar with cinnamon filo wrapped thing. The best way I can describe it is a filo pasty ‘sope’. It was basically a little puff pasty with filling. There was entirely too much sugar on top — it covered the entire plate and it didn’t compliment the dish at all. The filling inside was dry and the best way I can describe it would be the filler of a microwavable burrito that has been heated for far too long.
The second was the salmon dish with couscous and guess what — the SAME SALAD FROM THE APPETIZER. Sure, they added like 6 raisins to make it different I guess. The same exact carrots, the same cucumber, the same tomato salsa thing, the same eggplant, and guess what — THE SAME 1 LEAF OF LETTUCE. There was nothing special about the salad the first time — it was not flavorful nor memorable.
The salmon was overcooked, dry, and flavorless. I think there were some spices on top but I couldn’t taste it. Now I’m on a special diet and I my taste palette is sensitive but I still couldn’t taste anything. My girlfriend’s salmon was slightly more charred than mine. I then found a few scales in my salmon. I have not encountered this at any other restaurant in recent memory.
The couscous — nothing special. Just a round scoop of flavorless couscous. A garnish on top would have made it look nice at least.
By this time we just really want to get out of here. We’re actually having a good time — by talking about how terrible this place is. Not to mention the service was getting progressively worse. They were giving the dishes to the wrong tables. Slight miscommunication among staff but it was really not busy at all. They were also coming by less and less to check on the table. I was never offered more tea.
Dessert. A plate with Baklava and vanilla bean ice cream. The baklava was good, the ice cream bad. It tasted like iced water, not ice cream. It was flavorless, colored ice with a hint of vanilla flavoring. I’m pretty sure it was some type of imitation vanilla extract. I think it was advertised as vanilla bean but it was clearly not. There were no black specs in the ice cream that would indicate it actually had vanilla bean. It didn’t taste like it was made with cream at all. It was not milky or fatty as with most ice creams. I kept trying to find the flavor but after 2 or 3 spoonfuls I gave up.
I really wanted to leave and also talk to the manager but I didn’t want to ruin anyone else’s night and also give the impression that I didn’t want to pay. So I sucked it up and decided I would call afterwards to give my 2 cents. The phone line was just a recording to make reservations and I left a VM but haven’t heard back.
The purpose of this review is not to bash the place but I really, really wanted this to be a good dinner and experience. My girlfriend and I like to travel and the reason I chose this place was because she’s interested in visiting Morocco and other countries. I would hope that this review helps by providing honest feedback of the menu on this day. I would still really appreciate if the manager would reach out to me. I left my name and number on the VM. My reservation was at 6pm. Thank you and good luck.

Is is possible for a place to get everything wrong? It was empty on Friday night, when every other place had a wait. That alone should have told us. Hunger overcame.
The falafel was the most tasteless I have ever had. And I mean that. It was not spiced and we could actually taste the flour mixed in.
The pita bread was store bought. We buy it all the time. Shocking how brazen the terribleness was. Same sizes and machine made. It was doughy since they did not even use an over to warm it up. Microwaved stale store pita.
For $ 18 you get a tiny half of a Cornish hen. Again not spiced at all and was clear that they did not cook it in the clay pot. The pot it came in was cool. The sauce was inadequate to even cover the tiny portion. And to ad insult into injury, the chicken was not marinated or seasoned in any way. It was bought baked and the sauce trickled over.
The single star for decent service, but what a disaster.

ya know i really liked this place! the food was quite delicious compared to other moroccan /​belly dancer places I’ve been to where it was just ‘eh’ and you were paying more for the entertainment.
however, one thing that was a turn off was that we arrived at 7pm on a Saturday (meant to come at 6:30 but the wonderful bay area traffic said otherwise!) and the place was DEAD. dead. empty. scary empty. throughout the whole night it only filled to maybe 4 tables? just odd. it was the weekend a few weeks before thanksgiving… just a normal night. but lets face it, a place like this is a special occasion place. of the 4 parties, two of them were celebrating birthdays (including us, for my dad).
if you are coming with a group… the group pre fixe menu is definitely the way to go. $ 30/​person with 4 courses, i believe: lentil soup, an assortment of spreads with bread, a massive meat platter and baklava. i was really impressed with the quality of everything — esp the meat. ive just grown to accept the «novelty factor» of it typically being more about the entertainment with lackluster food. but that was not the case! good food here. the Unilocal ratings don’t lie.
as for the belly dancing… quite fun to watch and as someone who was coaxed to go up and learn a bit of it and particiapte in a dance, i had a good time.

Really loved the look and feel of the place. We came in a bit after the main dinner rush and didn’t see a belly dancer or anything, but enjoyed the relaxing vibe and beautiful colors and textiles.
But we came for the food, and we left kind of disappointed. Perhaps my favorite dish of the night was the free appetizer that we were given, bread with an eggplant based dip, as a result of our order taking so long, which we didn’t complain about or anything.
The hot mint tea was also good.
Other than that, the Pastilla was uninspiring and lacking flavor. The falafels were dry and the El Essaouira was also pretty bland. Maybe they just had an off night.
We might go back for drinks and belly dancing, as the place was great for lounging. Just not so great for dining.

Came here for a date night and started with the Chicken Pastilla (a flakey pastry covered with cinnamon & sugar but filled with a savory chicken). I wasn’t sure if I’d like the mix of sweet & savory, but this dish changed my mind. We continued with the super tender Lamb & Onion Tagine (our waitress’s favorite) and the Chicken Kebab. We washed it all down with homemade sangria & our waitress even threw in some Morrocon tea with our baklava. Everything we had was delicious.
The only thing is that the place was empty for the entire time we were in the restaurant. I asked the waitress if they’re normally empty on a Thursday night. She said that normally large groups book all the tables from Thursday — Sunday, since they have belly dancers perform during dinner. However, a large party canceled at the last minute. Regardless, it was a little weird to have the entire restaurant to ourselves for over an hour… but the food made me really not care.

Love the food here. The service is great, and they take last minute Open Table reservations. I got the Combo Plate for my appetizer. It came with Falafel, Babaganooush (SP?), Hummus, Olives, and Dolmas (Grape Leaves). All pretty good. For my meal I got the Couscous with Chicken, which was very good. The server was telling me the difference between the entrée saying if I wanted less couscous, I should order the Chicken Kebab with couscous as my side. I love couscous, so I got the regular chicken with it. It was delicious. Just the perfect amount of spice. For dessert, I got a free dessert via Unilocal check in deal. I got the baklava, which was good as well. They added extra honey. So delicious!
Not sure why some people claim this place isn’t authentic, because I’ve been to a bunch of Mediterranean countries, and this is just as good, but with better flavoring and service. You also get a cool belly dancing show and sit in a room that feels tent like. Will definitely come back again to try the other dishes.

I have been here twice and plan on going back.
Looking from the outside, you would not believe that it looked like a tent on the inside. The décor is very colorful and inviting.
The prix fixe meal provides more than enough food, especially for 2 people. I absolutely love the pastilla. It had the perfect balance and I couldn’t stop eating it every time. And honey mint tea was perfectly sweetened. I now drink mint tea because of this place.
I’ve had the coucous with chicken and on my second visit, chicken with honey and prunes. Both dishes were delectable. My only criticism is that there wasn’t enough chicken in the dishes. But they were still tasty. Be prepared to eat with your hands. You don’t have to, but it makes it more fun!
I unfortunately never made it on a night when the belly dancer was working, but the next time I go out, I will try to. I do recommend this place and I hope that you at least try it.

Went to celebrate my mother in law’s 70^th bday and we had a blast. There was something on the menu for everyone… even the picky eaters. The was delish and dinner came with a show! The servers were very friendly and patient with my group. Great place!!!

I brought my boyfriend here for his birthday yesterday and it was delicious!
We ordered:
1. Vege Pastilla: I’m not a fan of the powdered sugar and cinnamon on top but the flaky wrap and veggie fillings were really tasty! I just pulled the sweet layer off and ate it after.
2. Lamb and onion Tagine: I usually dislike the aftertaste of lamb that reminds me of dirty dish rags but the way that Tanjia cooks their lamb with all its seasoning made me think it was really tender beef or something. It was REALLY delicious and filling. I would order this again. My boyfriend was literally licking the bones clean…
3. Chicken kabobs: the dish came with 2 kabobs, a small scoop of couscous and veggies. Portion wise, this dish was disappointing (since it cost just as much as the lamb tagine) but the flavor was powerful, maybe a little on the salty side but tasty nonetheless. The chicken was tender and thankfully not chewy as I was imagined it when my boyfriend said he wanted to order it. I wonder how many kabobs the couscous with chicken kabobs comes with. (the couple sitting next to us ordered couscous plate with some type of stew on top and a lot of couscous left over. We coulda used some of that left over for our kabob plate…
Service was quick and friendly. Someone brought out lamb kabobs instead of chicken kabobs and when I told them that it was the wrong order, they apologized and then our server came out to apologize again. Thankfully they kept our water glasses full because Moroccan food is really flavorful so we drank tons of water.
The belly dancer was really fun to watch, especially when a little girl from another table got up and joined her.
We got a coupon for our next visit for a free glass of sangria so I’ll be back again!

So the girl and I decided to have a date night. We looked up this place to eat and we were off to try out some Moroccan food. You walk in and there aren’t really tables you’d expect from a restaurant. They are shorter in height and you sit on cusioned seats which are about small stool size. So if you have back problems I suggest sitting on the side with the actual back of the booth to lean on. So we walk in and it’s pretty obvious that the waitresses don’t really work well with each other and lots of miscommunication between them all but they were all nice so it didn’t really get in the way of customer service it was just odd to be asked for food orders from 3 different people right after another. No order when taking orders I suppose. So we end up ordering the sampler plate which has hummus and dolmas and falafel and such. I didn’t really like the dolma because it’s different than you’d get at a Greek place and it’s an acquaired taste but I just didn’t care for it. Next I ordered a Lamb Tagine and my girl got the chicken. They first brought our food and they mixed it up so we had already taken a bite of the food and that’s when we found out but I mean they look different it shouldn’t have been that hard to tell the difference but the reason I didn’t catch it is because it’s dimly lit in there. So the food was tasty but It’s just overpriced for what you get portion-​wise. It’s a small portion and the ingredients aren’t super complex but it works. Maybe the saffron is what makes it so much money but never the less a little more couscous could go a long way. We got dessert for free with a Unilocal check in so we got a baklava and it was delicious. Crispy, sweet and flakey. Major props for that but what saved this place for the review is the belly dancer. She was great and danced well and tried to involve everyone in the restaurant to get up and dance with her, it was great fun. So I would have given this place 3 stars but because of the new developments I upgrade to 4 star rating but that is rounding up from about a 3.6 or 3.7 star review.

Before I write about the food, let me qualify myself as someone who has had Moroccan food many, many times. I also grew up in an Egyptian household where food is served in much the same way.
So, why two stars and not four like so many other reviewers?
The food is awfully darned pricey for what you get. I never expect a gigantic portion, nor do I want massive quantities, but I do expect fair.
We started with the eggplant salad and the cucumber/​carrot salad, which took a very long time to arrive. This was particularly notable as we were the only guests until 45 minutes or so after we arrived. The eggplant was very tasty, while the other had clearly been marinating in the vinaigrette for some time as the cucumbers had lost their crispness. Warm, tasty bread was served with these appetizers and overall the eggplant — slightly sweet, somewhat tangy, a bit spicy — was the clear winner.
Fifteen minutes later, our chicken pastilla arrived. This was quite delectable, and we were pleased.
Twenty minutes later, our entrees came out, each in their own individual tagines. My friend and I both ordered the lamb with honey and almonds. Our husbands ordered the lamb and eggplant and lamb kebab.
The honey lamb portion was quite small, perhaps 4 ounces of meat total once you get it off the bone, and this could and would have been overlooked had it not been incredibly salty, overly spicy and lacking the rich, honeyed sweetness this dish generally imparts. Adding to insult, they use slivered almonds rather than the fried whole almonds that are traditional. It wasn’t the worst dish we’ve ever had, but it most certainly was not the traditional recipe. Oh, and yes I do happen to have the recipe, which came to me via a Moroccan woman from Tangier.
The guys meals seemed okay, nothing they raved about.
Here’s where the points rapidly get taken away:
The couscous, the mainstay of a Moroccan diet was served in a mini-​tagine and made up a scant ½ cup serving. Anyone who has ever eaten at any Moroccan or Middle Eastern restaurant knows that the starch whether couscous or rice is practically the main event. Not a condiment.
Just for the sake of sh*ts and giggles, my friend asked the waitress whether couscous is served in such small portions in Morocco. She assured us, with all deadpan sincerity that yes, in fact they use the very same mini-​tagines.
I call B.S. on this. No where on the planet is the carbohydrate served in such anorexic portions. No where.
We asked for a couple extra couscous to compensate and ultimately were charged $ 3.00 per extra serving, for what was perhaps .25 worth of unprepared couscous.
For $ 18 per we had the equivalent of 4 ounces of lamb, a smattering of slivered almonds, and a doily of plain, unadulterated couscous. Unreal.
The server was a nice, quiet young woman who had us there for almost two hours. Service was so slow, by the time we left, our husbands were squirming in boredom and it felt like were being held captive. It was astonishing.
Weird note: In passing the kitchen on the way to the restroom, there was nothing, absolutely nothing, being done in there. The counters were clean, nothing was in mid-​preparation, nothing was cooking and the Asian woman standing there was the only person in the kitchen. I am suspicious about this; like how far in advance is everything prepared so that they only have to heat and plate it? Is nothing made fresh in there? Given the wait-​time, even just for pre-​made baklava at the end of the meal, I suspect some very poor management.
In spite of all the rave reviews, let me assure you that there is better — far, far better Moroccan food available in the Bay Area — and it’s worth the drive to San Francisco if you must. Tanjia is just not worth it, not the time nor the money spent.

I was here 2 years ago with my husband’s family (delayed review much?) and it was my first experience with Moroccan food.
I remember really liking the food and the ambiance was awesome. You sit on pillows around shin/​knee high tables; the room is covered in fabric to make it feel like you’re inside a big tent.
It was a lot of fun and the woman belly dancer that came in was entertaining and engaging. It was a bit on the costly side but we left very full and thoroughly entertained.

Ambience was nice and service was par.
Price was unfortunately high in comparison to the quality of food. Went with a party of 11 and sampled most things on the menu: chicken was dry and over cooked and the lamb was old, hard, and gamey — not to the standards of a $ 30 plate dinner. Couscous appear to be cooked in ramen bullion. Appetizers were ok, nothing special to write Unilocal about.
Can only recommend the «clay pot» beef balls.
Bellydancing was somewhat entertaining but not worth the overinflated bill.

The food in this place was excellent. I had once ordered takeout and was disappointed, and tonight was a total about-​face. Very very good, and I would definitely go back.
Tonight we shared a dinner (salad very good; bastilla just okay — hard not to compare to La Med) with lamb with preserved lemons and chicken with almonds.
The seasoning on the lamb was incredible! The chicken was less stunning, but that fits with my preferences with food — I always enjoy the lamb better. For me the citrus aspect of the preserved lemons is essential and I would not order lamb without it.

We had dinner here with some friends recently, and everyone was disappointed.
The service was pretty awful. The server didn’t seem very knowledgeable about the food, and most of us at the table weren’t very familiar with this type of cuisine.
We had to flag someone down several times for waters, and drinks were forgotten more than once. Our food actually took so long, (while other tables that ordered after us seemed to be getting their food) that the manager came out and apologized, and brought out a few free glasses of wine.
When the food FINALLY came, 3 out of the 4 of us weren’t impressed with any of of it. My husband ended up eating less than half his entrée. The kefta in the tagine were REALLY salty. The rest of the food was fairly bland, and and had no distinctive flavors at all.
Another huge issue with this place is the seating. I get that they’re trying to give you the feeling of dining in a Bedouin tent, but the short tables and tiny seats aren’t conducive to an enjoyable experience. I’m short, and I was uncomfortable. I saw a lot of bigger guys that looked like they were sitting in children’s chairs.
Also, what’s up with having to repeatedly ask for dirty dishes to be taken away? That was annoying as well.
All in all, while i see that this could be a fun experience with the belly dancing and audience participation, the service and food are terrible. With so many interesting restaurants in the area, there’s no way I would ever return here.

Came here on a Wednesday so it was relatively quiet. They had a Tues-​Thur specials menu where they have some items at a discounted price like the moroccan cigars. Since we were doing the $ 25 dinner, we had enough food but may return in the future to try the Tu-​Th menu.
Value and food: The $ 25 is a great value with lentil soup to start, Moroccan salad which is pickled carrots, cucumbers, etc. and pureed eggplant (like baba ganoush) and pureed tomatos that you pick up with their bread. Bread is not flatbread but more like french bread. You choose from different entrée choices and preps. Menu may be a bit confusing as they have lamb with couscous or couscous with lamb which almost sounded like the same thing but we assumed lamb w/​coucous means more lamb served with a side of couscous while couscous w/​lamb means couscous is the star with a side of lamb? The lamb brochettes (lamb on skewer) were way too dry for my taste while hubby’s chicken w/​honey and prunes was moist and tender so the prep does make a difference. Dinner ends with a small pot of mint tea.
Ambiance: Tables were along the side of the restaurant while the middle was all open probably for the belly dancers when they have them. This place especially when quiet on a weekday can be romantic as you are seated side by side vs. across from each other and the lighting is on the dim side.
Parking: Since the Temescal area has lots of restaurants/​shops now, it did take a little while to find parking but we were able to secure one 2 blocks away.

Mr Rinky and I plus our son had dinner here to celebrate our anniversary.
A friend had given us $$ for Christmas and we used it to have a lovely dinner.
I hadn’t eaten at a Moroccan restaurant since I was in my twenties and had often thought about going to Tanjia because of its wide range of vegan, vegetarian and meat selections.
We arrived there early and there was only a duo seated across the room.
We enjoy eating early to avoiding crowds and allowing food to digest before bed.
I may be considered a part popper but I was glad the belly dancers were not performing that night. There’s something about people gyrating over the food that is a bit unappetizing. Maybe it’s the thought of someone’s belly shaking that reminds me of my chubby belly that should go easy on consuming the vast amounts of food that I plan to ingest.
The restaurant is smaller than the photos would lead you to believe but the ambiance is still fun and inviting. The ceiling is draped with a billowy cloth which peaks in the center resembling a tent. You feel as if you’ve been transported to an exotic locale, far away from Telegraph Avenue.
We started off with Babagonoush, which came with hot pita bread.
Tangy and tasty.
We ordered the $ 29 meals which included:
The lentil soup —slightly spicy but very tasty
Hot slices of bread
Salad with roasted, marinated veggies: eggplant, cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots.
cauliflower and bell peppers.
Bastillas with:
Veggie and Tofu
Veggies
Chicken, egg and almond
All flaky and tasty.
Entrees (all will ample food)
Chicken Kabob with couscous and veggies (Marinated and grilled)-son gave it a thumbs up.
Chicken with almonds (marinated in a slightly tangy but very tasty sauce)
Vegetables with couscous —Mr Rinky loved it.
All in all we enjoyed our meals and will probably return for another special occasion meal. Service was friendly.