From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published April 24, 2007 Casablanca 2$ Metairie: 3030 Severn Ave. 888-2209. Lunch and dinner, Sun.-Thurs. Lunch only Fri. Dinner only Sat. AE, MC, V. Moroccan. Kosher. Kosher food is catching on. The strictness of Jewish dietary laws appeals to some non-Jews. Kosher beef, for example, is slaughtered a prescribed way. Kosher chickens are significantly better than standard chickens. Those who are lactose-intolerant (or who say they are) know that kosher restaurants serving meat do not serve any dairy products at all. Casablanca's kitchen is wide-ranging and adventuresome, and it is strictly kosher. But that's not the main theme. Linda Waknin and her family come from Morocco, whose cuisine is influenced by Turkish food--as are all the Middle Eastern restaurants we're used to. Northern Africa has its own dishes. Couscous is a grainy pasta (the grains are a little bigger than grits) cooked above a savory stock, then tossed with vegetables and meats. Add a little harissa (the Moroccan answer to Tabasco) and you have something very tasty. Another famous Moroccan specialty is tagine, a chunky stew baked with herbs, peppers, tomatoes, and hot pepper. The fish tagine is very good, despite the fact that the fish is usually the tasteless tilapia. One more dish you're not likely to find elsewhere: chicken bastilla, a pie flavored with cinnamon and raisins as well as savory ingredients. I love it, but it requires an adjustment of one's palate. Start with the appetizer assortment for two or more people. The best of it is the baba ghanoush, a dip made of smoked eggplant, garlic, olive oil, and herbs. Also on the platter will be hummus, tabbouleh, spinach pie, and grape leaves stuffed with seasoned rice. (The latter looks like boudin on the inside but is meatless.) Casablanca is a great soup house. They make two variations of lentil soup, one with chickpeas and a good deal of pepper. If you happen to be there on a day when the soup du jour is split pea, get it: it's the best I've had anywhere. Linda makes it from vegetable broth, onions, cilantro, celery, turmeric, salt and pepper, with extra cilantro added at the end for a fresh taste. Entrees include all the familiar kebabs, sometimes in slightly different forms than what you find in the Lebanese places. Kafta, for example, is shaped more like the hamburger it is (with cracked wheat, parsley, and seasonings) than the usual sausage shape. Moussaka is also offbeat, with mashed potatoes instead of bechamel (a kosher no-no), with eggplant in the center and a little bit of tomato sauce on top. In addition to the Moroccan menu, they also make deli sandwiches of pastrami, corned beef, roast beef, and all the rest of the standards. All desserts are made here. The cheesecake is made with tofu, to replace the dairy products. I sneered at this the way you're doing right now--and then I tasted it. In both texture and flavor, this is classic cheesecake. Quite a marvel. Casablanca's dining room is a pleasant surprise. Behind the facade of an ordinary-looking strip mall, twenty-foot ceilings and a large mural create a grand effect.The room has glass-brick dividers and other nice touches; the entire place sparkles. Service is friendly and good. If you're there at lunch, you may well encounter the rabbi who approves everything here. He always looks happy, and I look happy right back at him. This was a restaurant in the 2007 Top Sixty Ethnic Restaurant Countdown. To view the entire list, click here. Click here for an index of all restaurant reviews. © 2007 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.