When you arrive at someone’s house as their guest, you would naturally expect to be greeted by your host. For Simon Emaleh, it should be no different when a customer arrives at his Sherman Oaks restaurant, the eponymous Simon’s Cafe. As both head chef and owner of the Moroccan cafe, Emaleh also regularly pops out of the kitchen to take reservations, greet new arrivals, explain the menu, and even serve wine and food to diners.
“I want to make people feel like they are in my home,” said the affable Moroccan-born chef.
The dimly lit restaurant is nestled in a quiet nook next to the intersection of the 405 and the 101 freeways, and is fronted with a sign that presents a list of impressive credits: “Best Lamb Tajine in L.A. – L.A. Magazine,” “Best Merguez Sausages in L.A. – L.A. Times,” and “Best Couscous in L.A. – Daily News.” Though he has no formal culinary school training, Emaleh began his career in the art of fine food at age 14, when he worked as a French chef’s assistant at an Israeli Club Med. He later opened the first Moroccan restaurant in Japan, in the city of Kobe, before moving to Southern California.
All of the Mediterranean menu at Simon’s Cafe is made from scratch and features the unique combination of flavors present in traditional Moroccan food.
“I love the mixture of French, Spanish and Italian, which gives the food a lot of flavor,” Emaleh said.
A small, intimate venue, the cafe features a wall lined with paintings of French posters — which Emaleh explains are there to satisfy his “French nostalgia” — opposite a wall covered with embroidered Moroccan tapestries. Gold, silver and copper vases and teapots stand together on high shelves, and small roses grace each table.
To begin the evening meal, Emaleh recommended his combination platter, which highlights several of the restaurant’s most popular appetizers: falafel, hummus, baba ganoush, matbouha (stewed tomatoes, peppers and garlic) and zaalouk (grilled eggplant with tomatoes), all served with pita. The falafel, in particular, surprises with its unusually airy texture. The platter can be complemented by a glass of Guerrouane Rouge — a fruity, red Moroccan wine whose smooth start and finish make it easy to drink.
Photo by Dan Kacvinski
The mint iced tea is a refreshing choice when eating the eggplant cappellini, which manages to accommodate just enough spiciness without being overbearing. Emaleh’s vegetable couscous dish is especially notable. The couscous is light and fluffy, with just a scattering of currants on top; the vegetables come separately in a rich, flavorful broth ladled onto the couscous, giving the meal the warm feel of a Shabbat dinner.
The sole waiter on duty on a weekend night explained that desserts at Simon’s Cafe change weekly, but consist largely of candied fruits and eggplant, fruit tarts and tiramisu.
Yet, it is Emaleh’s traditional tajine entree that seems to draw the most attention at the restaurant. It also happens to be the chef’s favorite meal to prepare. To create meat in the stew that is as tender and moist as possible, Emaleh explained, regularly takes four to five hours of cooking.
“In today’s business, no one wants to take so much time to make a dish,” he said. “I like to make everything my way!”
Despite the demands of his preparations, Emaleh politely apologizes to the guests at his tables when he can’t spend more than a few minutes chatting and explaining the food before having to run back to the kitchen. He does admit that while his personal involvement in every aspect of the dining experience is rewarding, he’s hesitant to open a second restaurant any time soon.
Although Emaleh is Jewish, the restaurant is not kosher. Because he always wants to make his guests feel at home, however, he explained that he does know the laws of kashrut quite well and is more than happy to make vegetarian meals that are as close to kosher as he can possibly make them.
Simon’s Cafe is open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday and for lunch Tuesday through Friday. For cafe hours and to view the menu, visit simonscafe.com.
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