Alzohour Market

This meal was like nothing I’ve ever had before — I’ve had Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine at a number of places but this was my first time trying Moroccan food. The entrees were superb and very generously portioned — we shared the lamb tagine and the bastilla. Such rich and complex flavors and an interesting combination of savory and sweet, just absolutely delicious. Also had the best stuffed grape leaves I’ve ever had (served warm, which I really liked because they tasted so freshly made).
Service was friendly and pretty quick, it’s a one woman operation so I expected I’d be pretty slow but there was only one other group of diners there so I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly our food came out.
I highly recommend checking this place out, it exceeded my expectations. You won’t be disappointed!

We were passing through Phoenix on our way to California, and eventually to Seattle, and we found this family friendly restaurant just near our hotel. We were craving for Moroccan couscous and lamb Tajine. Boy was it delicious! We had the lamb Tajine, and my daughter had the chicken kebab. For dessert we had the kunafah. Everything was delicious and we though we were somewhere in Marakesh or Rabat. The owner went out of our way to accommodate us by making fresh kunafah even though it was sold out as we went for a late dinner.

Great food with authentic flavor, had the chicken couscous which was awesome and my girlfriend had the fish tajine, we enjoyed the food very much and will come back soon for more.

Absolutely delicious meal — couscous with lamb for my husband and bastilla for me. Generous portions and wonderful seasonings. Be prepared for a relaxed pace and watch out for small bones, but the meal was extremely enjoyable.
I would love to see the bastilla in an appetizer size, because it’s a little too sweet to make an entire meal. You might want to share it with a dining companion, which is what we did.
We will definitely come back.

Definitely a fan of Moroccan cuisine. Delicious chicken couscous, lamb, and goat.

We had been in Morocco earlier in the year. My wife’s birthday was a reason to celebrate and to relive part of the trip… the food here was better than in Casablanca. Just surrender to the menu, ask for guidance and you will have a wonderful dining experience. The low ambiance is off set by great food and hospitality. We will be back often.

As a family, we are trying foods from around the world. Tonight was Morocco night so we went across town to try Alzohour. It was a wonderful experience and the food was fantastic. We got it to go so we had to wait a bit but it allowed us to take in the full experience. It is a family owned business and they all do their part to bring it all together. Go in with an open mind and just take in the experience. No, it is not a fancy place and they don’t run it like a chain restaurant, they do it how a family owned restaurant should do it. We are glad we made the trip and experienced the flavors of Morocco.

This place is way over priced, and their food taste just OK. The lamb tagine was too sweet. Nothing really impressed me.

The food is GREAT! The owner lady is super sweet and welcoming !! I would give this place 5 stars on food quality and a 4 on service, because it’s kind of slow (the chef also is the server, so, makes it extra slow) !!! Once you eat though, you don’t even care about the fact that the service is so slow haha !!! Check it out!!!

Alzohour Market is a prime example of the recommendation not to judge a book by its cover. It has the (rightful) appearance of a store, where you could buy Halal meats, canned goods and clothing, but there is really nothing to suggest it being a restaurant except for the few tables and chairs. While the store is quite large, the amount of space dedicated to the dining area isn’t and this is a shame.
Alzohour Market is a «mom-​n-​pop» shop, the husband being from Morocco; the wife being Syrian (I asked, because there was a fairly wide selection of Bosnian items on the shelves — as is the case in several Middle Eastern shops in the Valley — and also, because there was at least one Bosnian dish on the menu). Their respective heritages are readily reflected in the food, which, at times, may be somewhat different than what you’re used to in Middle Eastern food.
We started out with the hummus and babaganoush as appetizers. For the prices they charge, the portions were more than acceptable. While neither was typical of similar dishes we’ve had in the Valley (the hummus came with a variety of vegetables garnishing it and the babaganoush had onions and was somewhat ‘gelatinous’), both were very tasty and neither of us had any complaints about either (except a difference of opinion as to which was tastier).
My partner then had an order of cheese pie and one of meat. While the wife part of the team (part chef; part waiter; and part marathon runner) stated the cheese pie would be like a «burek», it really wasn’t (but that’s irrelevant). At $ 2.99 each, the sizes of each were good and could easily have sufficed as either an appetizer or even a meal in itself (in fact, after splitting the hummus and babaganoush, and then having these two pies, my partner was — amazingly — full … no mean accomplishment, if you’ve read my other reviews and know how much of a glutton we both are. That nevertheless did not stop him from helping me polish off my entrée and half a dessert). The cheese in the cheese pie is a bit salty, so if you’re not a fan of salty foods, be advised. The meat pie looks like a flat, pita-​pizza and, in itself, is not very substantial.
I had the lamb tangine for my main entrée and was pleasantly surprised … especially as its no easy feat to find variety in a Middle Eastern restaurant out here. The lamb was succulent and almost fell off the bone. The stewed prunes and toasted almonds complimented the lamb splendidly and the sauce was finger-​lickin’ good (yes, I had washed my hands beforehand). Like most Middle Eastern restaurants, the lamb was served with way too much saffron rice, which, while very good, is something no diabetic should be tempted with! :-)
Though we were quite full — and glad we had hit the gym prior to coming here — the owner recommended the Kunafa for dessert … and it was a wise recommendation. We’ve had this before in another restaurant in the Valley. It was served cold there and I was not particularly impressed. This time, it was served quite hot and the crushed pistachios and orange-​blossom water really contributed to its wonderful taste.
In my opinion, were the owners to shut down the store part of this place, do some decorating and hire some waitstaff, this place could easily become a very decent Middle Eastern restaurant in its own right and provide some much welcome competition to other places in the Valley. The minor discomforts of eating in a store, where the restaurant is not the main draw, should be overlooked this time. It’s quite worth it.

A while back, I read reviews of this place while searching online for Moroccan food. Have eaten here twice since then.
The overall business is quite spacious. It encompasses a boutique, grocery store, and small dining area. The owner says that she will be expanding and upgrading, but not sure of a time frame.
I’m mostly interested in the food, so as long as she keeps cooking up made-​to-​order platters, I’ll keep visiting. The food is yum yum yum to my tum tum tum.
I can barely pronounce the dishes and I surely can’t spell them, but you can find poultry, red meat, fish, and vegetarian food on the small menu. There are pictures at
— salad: wonderfully green, doesn’t come with cheese (I detest cheese in my salads!), and is dressed in a light tasty vinaigrette. Morsels of toasted pita on top.
— spinach pie: looks and tastes homemade (I’ll order two next time.)
— baba ghannouj: hearty, the eggplant is blended well and it’s not bitter like some other places.
— kashkbademjan: warm version of baba ghannouj that’s topped with olive oil, spices, and crumbles of nuts. I could eat this alone as my meal
— fish tangine: delicious with or without the marinated lemons. (The owner had run out of lemons on the second visit here.) It arrives to your table sizzling hot. It looks like a stew at first but once you cut into the fish and scoop up the veggies you can see that’s it’s a nice chunky sauce. A bit oily but tasty. With all the appetizers and salad, you can split the tagine easily between 3.
Just a note — If you’re planning on going to Alzohour with more than 3 or 4 people, I highly recommend calling ahead. Let me repeat. If you are going in a group of more than 4, I highly recommend calling ahead because otherwise you might be in for a long wait to get dishes on the table.

Moroccan food in Phoenix? What? How had I been working a mile down the street for a year and a half without trying this place?
Well, I finally stopped by. It’s a little confusing when you walk in, because it’s really a small operation… Didn’t know whether to just pick a table, or let the lady working there seat me, or what. But once I got situated, things started getting a little more relaxed.
The menu is impressive indeed, with a good six or seven dishes that were all calling my name. I ended up opting for the lamb tangine with soup and rice, and the lemonade. The lemonade is as good as any delicious lemonade you’ll find at a Mediterranean place, by which I mean it actually tastes kinda like lemon. I like that they make it a little tart — the same way they do it at my favorite Lebanese places.
The soup was a tomato based soup with carrots, chickpeas, lentils, spices, and possibly some other things. It’s OK, I’m not a huge fan of that kind of soup, but it went down nicely, even on a 110 degree day.
Of course the tangine was what I was looking forward to most — the only way I can describe it is succulent. The lamb is fall-​off-​the-​bone tender, and presumably cooked in the clay pot after which it is named, along with some figs and an aromatic sauce.
To complete the meal, I had some baklava for dessert. I figured I might as well try it, since I hadn’t had baklava in awhile. It was delicious. It was drizzled in a light syrup, and wasn’t quite as overwhelmingly rich as baklava can be sometimes.
This is definitely a place where you can expect to relax — it’s a small operation. But just savor it, you’re in Morocco!

My friend found this small Moroccan grocery and invited me to stop by for dinner. The interior consists of a grocery and clothing section, and a tiny dining area. There was not much of ambiance as we were the only visitors on that evening. It’s a one-​person operation and the owner does everything from kitchen to the floor.
The Harira ($ 3.99) came with lentils, tomatoes, garbanzo beans and cilantro soup. The blend of ingredients and spices made it zesty hearty with a good lift stemming from a mix of lentil and cilantro. It was a light opener and one item to consider for those looking for soups.
The Baba Ghannouge ($ 4.99) came with baked eggplant, sesame sauce, garlic, and lemon. The thick eggplant consistency was garlicky and addictive. The zesty lemony flavor nicely intertwined with the deepening sesame sauce. However, the bursts of eggplant flavors were held in check and in need to be more striking.
The Bamiah ($ 12.99) was put together with a large bulky piece of simmered lamb, saffron, okra, and a combination of spices. The okra was very tasty and nicely stewed. The outer-​layer of the lamb had some dry spots, but otherwise it was tender and easy to fork into. The mix of spices could also be more intense and integrated. It was missing one note that could have brought it all together.
The Goat Tagine ($ 14.99) was culminated by a large bulky piece of goat with the bone in, saffron, and spices. The goat too, had some dry spots on the outside, but it was still very tender and easy to fork into. The aroma was sensational, but I wished the goat were seasoned better.
Overall, the food was solid but not spectacular. There were some minor wow factors stemming from the soup and the wonder aroma of meat and spices. Despite the missing notes that could serve as a bridge between the meat and broth, but the drizzles were still very tasty when served on top of our generous servings of rice.
Service was very personable and friendly. It goes without saying, but the one-​person operation will cause the food to take some time to arrive. I’d be very interested in coming back to try their good-​looking Bastilla.

A friend and I shared a chicken bastilla here and loved it. Along with its companion salad, it would easily have served three, maybe four lunchers. Our second lunch buddy had the Bosnian sausage, served with sour cream but not avjar, which pretty well matched that of the Sarajevo Café but was not quite as savory (perhaps less fatty, which for us is actually a good thing). Service was leisurely, but we expected that. So, all good, though I wish they had divided up the salad and maybe the bastilla on individual plates (tables are small and the ensuing plate clutter was significant) and offered our friend both sour cream and the peppery red sauce (avjar) that would have made the sausages more complex and delicious. Other than that, no complaints at all about the food. Can’t wait to return for another bastilla.
I can’t speak for the scope of the market, but I did find some interesting items and did not find their prices out of line, considering how small the operation is. Enjoyed seeing the colorful clothing, at least some of which is apparently sewn on site.
My friends and I lunch weekly and seldom repeat a restaurant, but we agreed this one is a keeper for all of us.

Came here out of curiosity, and I left with mixed emotions. I wanted to fall in love with this place, but I can’t say that I did. We stopped by here looking to browse their wares and get a tasty bite to eat. Having just returned from Marrakech, we had our hopes high.
Their market area is… lacking, I’d say. Their items are kept in a somewhat decent order, but a lot of things look as if they haven’t been touched since the store opened. Some basic staples appeared fairly fresh and in constant rotation– spices, tea, and a few other culinary items. But a lot of things looked like they were including only by virtue of being dubiously ‘ethnic’, even if they weren’t Moroccan. Their selection of tea pots was pretty abysmal, with pretty much the entirety of their stock being gaudy plastic monstrosities which any self-​respecting Berber would rather die than serve tea to their guests with. They had a small selection of shisha pipes above their freezers, but these looked to be a sad selection as well. They had a woefully tiny stock of teacups and serving platters, and absolutely nothing that I would ever buy for my home. We found one smaller metal teapot which was of somewhat nicer construction, and decided to purchase it along with a few various candies, a bag of sugar squares (different from sugar cubes and MUCH better in your tea!), and a couple of other things. We also browsed through their Islamic clothing section which was pretty sad as well– their selection of djellabas was sparse, to say the least. There were a few nice items which my girlfriend admired, but by and large their selection was paltry.
So we took our purchases to the register and made ready for checkout. There was a man there who seemed to be running the entire store by himself, and the process of checkout was… not a smooth one. He had to call the owner several times for the prices of items, and that didn’t really go so well. It pretty much ended with a good ‘ol fashioned: «Well, how does $xyz sound?», to which I agreed.
We noticed some tasty smells coming from the back, and I inquired as to whether or not food was available. I couldn’t exactly understand if he said that it was or wasn’t, so I figured that I’d just see if he could make us a bastilla. He claimed that he could, and went to the back to prepare it. In the meantime we browsed a little more, and found a few more items.
The bastilla appeared, smelled delicious, and tasted delicious. It had a couple of small bones in it, which was both a good and a bad thing– a bad thing because bastilla shouldn’t have bones in it, but it also showed that it was made with freshly-​pulled meat, which might even have come from a quail or game hen. At any rate, it was delicious, and I can only assume that all of these people who’ve given the place five stars have done so because of their food.
So we went to check out and pay for our bastilla and two other items (a Moroccan ‘Barbie’ doll for my girlfriend’s youngest, and a small bottle of argan oil). By the time, the owner had returned to the store, and she rang us up. Our total for the food, oil, and doll was a little over $ 60. Seeing as how nothing in the entire store has a price on it, I didn’t ask for an itemized receipt, which I’m regretting now. In Morocco, it’s commonplace for store owners to quote you a highball price, which you’re supposed to negotiate with, and end the end you’ll probably pay a little less than a third of what they originally quoted. I wonder if I was expected to do that here, as well?
At any rate… I might come back one day for the food, but for housewares and whatnot you’re honestly better off going with Amazon. A replacement for a traditional souk, this is not. And maybe I was expecting and hoping for too much…

Really, I can describe this place only in superlatives. I’ve been here multiple times now, and it has never disappointed. Everything is cooked fresh, the flavors blend beautifully, and the owner is pleasant and informative.

A neighborhood ethnic place in yet another ubiquitous strip mall. I thought the food was good and the owners charming. I had the lamb shank with vegetables and cous cous. I thought is was good not great. It needed more seasoning and I relied on some red spicy sauce we all passed around to give it dimension. If I am ever in that neck of the woods again, I would definitely try one of the tangines.
We need to support places like this and enjoy the diversity in our neighborhoods!

Fabulous food. The owner is terrific. You won’t be disappointed. We drove 40 miles and will do it again. We tried four dishes and the were all delicious.

Went there expecting another back room table place. NOT the case. Was extremely amazed how just one lady can cook, run the meat counter, ring up customers in the front, take orders and serve food and still remain delightful. If you are understanding of the culture you know that time is unimportant, the food is why your there. I asked for a usual Moroccan drink and the owner brought out a unique beverage that i can only say you have to try just to try it. At the end of a fantastic meal I again asked what a usual dessert is and she came out with a wonderful seminola flour pastry with her own homemade cream filling bathed in honey, WOW!
Making a list of friends to bring there, cant’ wait to go back.

There (almost) is no need to hop the Marrakech Express since we have Alzohour Market right here in Phoenix. Islamic clothing, groceries and other items are sold here but there also is a very modest small Moroccan Restaurant and Bakery here. The food we tried was delicious. Service was VERY pleasant but terribly slow. I think it took them a half hour to bring our beverages. Only one other small table was in the restaurant and our meal was a two hour stay so that should be noted. I also noticed that table of four people had each plate delivered to them one by one and NOT TOGETHER! I think it might be very hectic for them to serve more than two tables at a time.
We shared the B’Stilla. It’s a Moroccan Appetizer. It’s a very large House Made Phyllo Pastry stuffed with shredded chicken, almonds, and cinnamon. It very delicious and certainly unique. It really feeds four or more people but we wanted to try it.
Then we shared another Moroccan dish the Fish Tangine. It was Cod on a sizzling skillet in a Tomato based sauce with onions, bell peppers, preserved lemons and exotic spices. It was very fragrant and spicy! They gave us side salads and a big plate of fluffy long grain rice to share.
You can get Moroccan without the hassle of going to Marrakech.
This building is Halal that means no pork is in the building and a big wall of A Grade Maricopa inspection reports are posted on the window.