I want to like this place, but I only kind of did. 4 appetizers, 1 entre, 2m1 desert (3 people) was only 55. Food, and was great, some was much less so. The babaganush, harrira (soup), and bastille were pretty good, and I would come back and get them aging. The falafel was over fried and dry. The combo platter rice was good, but meat was bland. And I'm so sad the dessert baklava was not that great. Smuttered in chocolate, the nuts and honey classic flavor could not be tasted. They have a few other dishes in curious to come back to try. But... service! Well. Waitress was very friendly, definitely good vibes. But after 1st water, never refilled glasses; and plates stacked up. I had to ask (more than once) to clear then to make space for next one. And restaurant was not busy. So service-wise, but great. Food, since really good, some just meh. I'm 50/50 on coming back. read more

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I wanted to try something different - different than what I normally gravitate toward when at home -and I hadn't had Moroccan food in AGES!!! Decided to go with the appetizer sampler and veggie tagine with couscous. The parking lot is small but convenient. The restaurant is quaint. Plenty of options on the menu and service was excellent. All was just okay. I think there was one item missing from my sampler but I didn't realize this until much later. The veggies were flavorful but I wondered if the corn, peas etc were frozen or from the can. The couscous was just okay. Again, a pleasant enough experience and no serious/major complaints. read more

Cafe Paprika - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

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My guess is this place is under newer ownership and the 5 star reviews are for the Cafe Paprika that once was. We were the only ones in the place at lunch time. There are serious communication issues with the two men who were working and only one order was brought to the table. Eminem blaring from the poorly tuned stereo in the kitchen coupled with the way below average food and service just did not give me the Middle East vibe I was looking for. The hummus lacked flavor and the falafels were not cooked thoroughly. The pita bread was comparable to grocery store pita that's about to get pulled from the shelf for expiration. read more

I was truly hoping that I would be able to give this place a solid 5-star rating but unfortunate I couldn't. I placed an order through DoorDash (Pickup) as I wanted to go and look at the restaurant. Placing the orders in that portal was easy. It gave me an estimated time for the food to be ready (about 20 minutes from 2:20pm when the order was placed.) Upon arrival at the promised time, the guy behind the kitchen window (or should I call it thr "ordering counter) immediately took notice of me so he greeted me to welcome me. Once I had given my name, he wasted no time to give me my food (Salad Maison and Combination Kebab as they had already been in a plastic bag.) "This is it. Thank you, Rika. See you next time." was said by the guys with a nice smile on his face. Even though brief, I appreciated this pleasant exchange of kind words. Service appreciated to be pretty solid here. I also noticed that the interior of the restaurant was quite quaint and cute. I couldn't help taking a few photos of the entire dining room. Now the food.... -Combination Kebab was overall quite dry especially the meats. They tasted like they had been sitting on some food warmer thing for quite sometime. The rice (bed spread underneath the meats) was also dry. -Salad Maison: Very unique salad. More than a handful of small-cut pita bread pieces were placed all over the salad where the some of the pita pieces got wet soggy so I removed them from it and placed them on the open lid to take a photo of the entire plate. If I were the restaurant worker there, I would put them in a small bag separated from the wet salad. Other than that, I found the salad unique with some distinct flavors or spices which I couldn't make of. However, I don't think I will order this again as it may not be my cup of tea. Maybe this dish is super authentic where only the real Middle Eastern or Moroccan people would understand it. Not sure to be frank. Well, I know other people rated Cafe Paprika very high which I don't disagree. There's got to be an appeal that resonated with them but for me, there are other similar restaurants that resonated with me more than this place. Hence my conclusion is, this place didn't make the list of my "favorite Mediterranean/Middle Eastern/Moroccan restaurants" unfortunately. I might give it and try in the future and that is not going to be anytime soon. read more

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A small, unasuming restaurant thag packs great flavor and wonderful service. I always order the lamb and finally convinced my best friend to try lamb too. He got the apricot lamb stew and has not stopped raving about it since. He isn't a big fan of fgamey meat but how the stew was made was to his liking. The lamb was so tender and practically flew off the bone. When in Rome, you do what the romans do, so we also ordered some Morrocan mint tea. Highly recommend this place. Easily missed but once tried, you'll miss it! read more

Cafe Paprika - Apricot lamb (it was a special at the time) - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

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This place has literally been here forever and has solid reviews. I believe it is only one of two Moroccan restaurants in the broader Denver MSAs. I've traveled to Morocco and I would say excellent Morrocan food is very hard to come by in the states. We ordered two tajines, a harrira (chickpea) soup and two mint teas (a hallmark of morrocan culture. The food was good, but it didn't blow us away. The service was friendly though and the ambiance felt like a blast from the past. Overall I recommend - it's pretty good. read more

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went there before Covid and it was a great food experience. Sadly not so this week. Really bad grilled chicken salad. Not at all tasty . Just an unappetizing mound of lettuce with a a kebab of three chicken pieces. yuck. Wont be visiting again The server/ cook was very pleasant though. read more

Not real Moroccan food at all. Food took at minimum 40min to come out. Server was nice.

These reviews are obviously very dated. Almost everything we ordered for appetizers was just ok. All of the main dishes had an off taste. One person in our party waited 30 minutes longer than the rest of us to receive her meal. Obviously they forgot to prepare her order and only did so when we brought it to their attention. No one else was in the restaurant but us. I guess that should have been our first clue that this was not going to be a great dining experience. Hopefully the management will take this to heart and make some improvements. Finally, all the comments about the friendly owner make no sense. It was not a friendly atmosphere in our experience. Very little communication between us and our server. He came out to bring the food and that's it. read more

This spot captures the essence of authentic Moroccan comfort food. It was so warm and inviting with very attentive staff. The standout dish was the lamb couscous: perfectly tender, slow-cooked lamb that practically melts in your mouth, layered over fluffy, fragrant couscous. The vegetables absorbed the rich spiced broth without losing their texture. Also very generous portions. If you're looking for a cozy, authentic meal that feels like it came straight from a Moroccan home kitchen, this is it. 10/10 would recommend! read more

Everything was absolutely delicious! The owner of the restaurant was so kind and welcoming, and chatted for a while with my husband, who had studied abroad in Morocco. The mint tea was delicious, and we received refills without even asking. There were pretty murals and ambient lighting around the restaurant. It's on the smaller side, but it doesn't feel cramped - just comfortable and welcoming! Each plate of food was cooked perfectly and had plenty of flavor and great serving sizes. Our two friends and my husband and I ate our fill and still had plenty of leftovers to take home. There wasn't one disappointing plate out of everything we ordered. I think our overall favorite was the kefta tajin! We will definitely be back again, and we can't wait to try more dishes at Cafe Paprika. read more

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Not sure what all the fuss is about. One of the worse Mediterranean spots I've found over 20 years living in Denver. Gyro meat dry as a bone - closer to jerky. Sautéed veggies over seasoned. Kefta kebabs crumbly and dry, tzatziki had a sweet taste that was off putting. read more

Made Reservation's, got there, the doors were locked the sign set up, but nobody was there.. it was Easter and we had to go home and eat leftovers. read more

The food is excellent, and the service is wonderful. The only problem my wife and I had, was that we wanted to leave immediately after eating; however the ticket was nowhere to be found. Most restaurants provide the ticket as soon as you are done with dinner. Cafe paprika wants you to stay and enjoy the ambiance, but we are always busy, and are fortunate to find time to eat out for dinner. Please furnish the ticket when we are finished with our meal. Thank you. read more

The first two times I called someone picked up the telephone and hanged up (20 minutes apart). Several days later the person who answered pretended to not understand what I asked, even though I worded my question several different ways. Then I asked to please speak to someone else. She said there was no one there, maybe later! Definitely not a wonderful intro. read more

We went there because of the many reviews and it looked delicious from the pictures. We ordered two traditional dishes and absolutely nothing had flavor. I never have to salt any of my food and I had to salt the hummus, the baba ghanoush, and the tagine. I love supporting small restaurants like this, but after that experience I would never recommend it to anyone. read more

The chicken tagine with artichoke and olives was amazing. The chicken was so tender and juicy! The couscous was savory and fluffy! We will be back! read more

It was my girlfriend's birthday so we decided to try a restaurant that was "new" to us and chose Cafe Paprika. Finding the place was only a tiny bit tricky as they are in a strip mall but parking was easy on a Saturday night. There were two other parties in the restaurant so not too crowded. Ambience was nice and we appreciated the Moroccan vibe; we typically chose Asian as our "go to" (Thai, Vietnamese, Japanese, etc.) so a North African restaurant was a welcome change. Food was terrific! We split the Salad Maison which was a delectable concoction of roasted eggplant, cucumber and tomato salad, marinated carrots, and sliced red beet salad which also came with slivers of pita bread. This was a good start! Then we had an order of falafel which was hot & hearty just the way we like it. Finally, we split a vegetable tajine on couscous which was also incredible. The chef(s) clear know what they are doing at Cafe Paprika! When we were paying the bill (~$50 incl tax & tip) my GF mentioned to the owner (whose name I neglected to learn) that it was her birthday dinner and he immediately offered her a slice of baklava on the house. Needless to say, we'll be back to Cafe Paprika!!! read more

Very pleasant decor and very tasty food. Lovely people to speak with. We plan to return.

Worst experience we have had that I can remember. We were in for an early dinner, 4:00, and the only customers in the restaurant to celebrate my wife's birthday. The service was horrible. Our waitress came to our table the minimum three times; to take our order, bring our food, and then to bring our bill. And the only words spoken were do you know what you want to order. She had ear buds on and was on the phone sitting below the back counter the entire time we were there. I went up to get a refill of soda and she acted as if she was being inconvenienced as she was talking on her phone. I even had to go back up a second time and she again said nothing and filled the glass as she handed it thru the window to me. We were wanting to order desert but she never came back. I went up to the window again where she was still on the phone to ask for a couple of "to go" containers and she pointed and said "they are over there". Eventually she came back with the bill and said nothing. Definitely the wrong person to have facing your valued customers. It took me 3 days of calling to finally get a managers information so I could share our negative experience. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised as when finally reaching the manager, Ekram, who showed no concern.....which I guess shouldn't have surprised me as the culture filters down from management. I would not recommend this restaurant to anyone!! read more

We have wanted to try Cafe Paprika for YEARS! Finally we were able to make it there and it was fabulous!! We loved everything we ordered - since they are only doing takeout we had to bring it back to our hotel and it was still delicious. Just devine! So much flavor and everything was made to perfection! We will come back and can only hope they can open their dining room soon! read more

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We took our eight-year-old granddaughter to dinner and she said the soup was one of the best she has ever tasted! But, the baklava was a close second, if not a tie, for her! The service was impeccable; friendly and attentive. We will definitely be back and we are telling our friends. read more

I stopped by on a whim on my way home from the airport. I got a combo to go. It included hummus, baba ganoush, and falafel. It was sooooo good. Probably the best I've ever had. I also had the opportunity to chat with the owner. What a nice and engaging person. I will definitely go back! read more

Found an awesome spot in Aurora- so authentic! They are only doing carryout due to COVID and you have to call them to place the order, which is the only way to place th order. Their doors are locked otherwise unless picking up the food. The host is very warm and really nice serving delicous food. We ordered falafel gyro with fries and Mahi Mahi with rice and vegetables. Everything was very well seasoned and plenty of food. Falafel was very moist and plenty of them in the gyro. Happy to have found an authentic food place! Must try... read more

Cafe Paprika - Falafel gyro with fries - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

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We've been fans for many years. It's welcoming and pure pleasure to be served with TLC. The food is beautiful and tastes wonderful. Love the mint tea and Bastilla. read more

What a fantastic gem! We've been coming here for 25 years and it's always wonderful. The owner is delightful and we always enjoy talking to him about travels to Morocco. My personal favorite is the Salad Maison, but you can't go wrong with the Bastilla (just delicious) and the gyros are the most tender I've ever had. We never miss the opportunity to go to Cafe Paprika when we're in the Denver area! read more

8/13 Family and were here for a birthday dinner, I was disappointed in the food, didn't eat mine. A Tajines was suppose to be a stew. It came out with fish and vegetables over a ton of coucous, but no sauce so very dry. I asked for sauce, but it wasn't that great, so didn't eat my meal. Overall food was bland for Mediterranean food. appetizer: Hummus was bland also. Needed seasoning. read more

Delicious food, warm and friendly service. This was my first time here. definitely planning on returning. Cozy environment..easy parking too. I enjoyed the apricot chicken, my friends had the kebabs.. We all enjoyed our dishes.. read more

The gentleman that owns this place is very friendly. Had a great conversation along with some amazing food. He makes everything in house and from scratch which you can taste. Very authentic cuisine with a great atmosphere inside. It's hard to find a place that makes lamb perfectly, this is the place for lamb if you're a fan!! I'll definitely return. Great portions at very reasonable prices. read more

Cafe Paprika - Gyro Sandwich - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

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We were too excited to eat so unfortunately we didn't take any pictures! We are visiting from out of town and grabbed dinner tonight and couldn't be happier we came here! Everything was incredibly delicious. I had the Tajine chicken with preserved lemon and olives over rice. The flavors were amazing and I couldn't believe how lemony the chicken was. My husband had the lamb shank and it was falling off the bone tender! Highly recommend. Large portions, we couldn't even finish our plates. Amazing food, and we got to talk to the owner a bit and he was so kind and friendly. We can't wait to come back the next time we're in town. read more

I was quite excited about this place as I had some tagine food in England recently and this place had great reviews. I was cutting back on meat (my mistake) so ordered the vegetarian tagine. Description was "Artichokes, olives and a variety of vegetables". I ordered it with couscous as opposed to rice, fine, but the "variety of vegetables" turned out to be either canned or frozen mix of peas and carrots. OK, now the experience... Right away as we were seated we were asked if we'd been there before, how we heard about it (I told him the tagine story and how excited I was) and he told me to be sure to go online and write a great review. This all before he even took our order. Be warned, we were seated at a table that was up a step. The guy next to us tripped when leaving. I too tripped, and fell, and felt ridiculous but there was no edging tape. Hurt my arm and ankle and was icing it with my water glass. He totally ignored us like he was afraid to face us, UNTIL the bill. When I told him what happened he merely stated, Oh, well, we always tell people to watch their step. THEN! After I paid the bill he said "watch your step"!!!! That was the final insult. Anyway, my friend ordered the lamb tagine and it had little flavor. So, there you have it. Really bad experience, and I am really sad to have to report this. I had such expectations. read more

Only serving carry out. I was in the neighborhood around lunch time. I ordered Hummus (came with pita pieces and falafel), Bastilla, and entrees were Chicken Kebab (platter?) and Chicken Couscous. All the food we had is delicious!! I will definitely order from here again. The Bastille was new to me - it's a meat (maybe Kefta?) filling with a very light and flaky pastry and powdered sugar and cinnamon sprinkled on top. Interesting sweet and savory that will likely grow on me. I was the only customer there at the time of pickup. The owner served me and was very friendly. He showed me all the food which was nice to see that it all matched what I was expecting to get. He also gave me a complimentary cup of mint tea, which was really tasty. The portions are hefty. There was enough food that me and my husband have leftovers. read more

The hubs and I met my cousin and her daughter here for a lunch catch up the other weekend. The service first and foremost was friendly and excellent. We started with the hummus, baba ganoush, and falafel combo plate. The dips were creamy and excellent examples of each. The falafel was perfectly crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Next came the chicken bastilla, the ubiquitous Moroccan appetizer. The chicken was tender and full of flavor and a perfect mirror to the crispy phyllo dough topped with powder sugar and cinnamon. It is a flavor that offers the salty and sweet combo and doesn't sound like it should work on paper but totally does. Our next stop were the main entrees which we all ordered tagines. The hubs went with lamb that was so tender it was falling off the bone. I opted for the artichoke and veggie and my cousin went with the combo which included halal sausage, seafood and chicken. The couscous was excellent with the tagines as well. We finished with the baklava and the almond phyllo sweets. The baklava was my favorite and one of the best I've had in Denver. We washed everything down with cups of mint tea that were beautifully poured by the owner. read more

Fantastic service and delicious food at a family owned and operated restaurant. Smooth and sumptuous hummus. Tasty falafel. Great fries even. They served chopped gyro meat which I hadn't had before but my mom really enjoyed it and I appreciated it's flavor. They dressed the greens on our pita wrap and I adored the dressing they used! We ordered the Bastille for an appetizer (way too much food but so good!) and it was the best one I have had. Very savory on the inside and a bit sweet on top. Others I had in the past were too sweet on the inside for my preference! My only gripes are 1.) our pita was a little on the older and chewy side and 2.) no garlic based sauce which I am crazy about. They have a lunch express menu they let you order from all day. I hope to come back for dinner though because Apricot chicken looked Devine! read more

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Visited Paprika on a Friday with a group of five friends, although the place was not that busy I would recommend making a reservation given the place is small. Also keep in mind this is a family operation with only two employees it seem (one cook and one waiter) so the service might be slow. For appetizers we went with the middle eastern combination which we enjoyed very much. The falafel were crispy and delicious as well as the hummus. Also had the Greek salad which was average. The bastilla was something new given it is both savory and sweet at the same time. My only comment regarding the appetizers hot dishes is that they were not that hot when they came out, felt more as if they were heated rather than being cooked recently. The mains dishes felt more as if they were cooked to order. My lamb shank was great but had higher expectations specially in terms of the richness of the sauce (marag) it came with. The meat itself was tender and didn't need a knife to slice, just pushing it with your spoon will do. As for desserts we went with the baklava and the m'hencha. Both were pretty standard nothing special. Overall a decent place to taste some Moroccan food in the area given there isn't many choices of this cuisine. Here are my ratings: Falafel: 8/10 Hummus: 8/10 Pita bread: 6/10 Greek salad: 6/10 Lamb shank: 8.5/10 Baklava: 7/10 M'hencha: 6.5/10 read more

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It's so fast and the stuff is always fresh. Friendly atmosphere and they care about customer service to the core. I am happy I come here for my belly to get full! Thank you cafe paprika! read more

Cafe Paprika - Excited on my way there! - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

Went there on a Saturday around 4 pm and it was closed and no sign of anyone inside. Disappointing.

What was I thinking these past 20 years? I used to go to this place all the time when I lived in Cherry Creek. But in 2000 I moved to Lakewood and it just went under my radar. I forgot how absolutely delicious this place is! After Mantaan fez closed I have not found Bastilla anywhere that's any good. I honestly don't know what made me think about it today. The place I usually get lamb shanks it's really starting to take a dive. So discovering Cafe Paprika again is very opportune. And they have so many choices. I so prefer couscous to rice. The lamb shank the couscous the vegetables is at least two meals if not more. And I'm looking at the menu and remembering all the other really delicious things that I used to get. OK it's a bit of a drive from Lakewood but the owner told me I didn't need a Visa to go to Aurora! 30 minutes is totally worth the drive. I even got a lovely cup of hot mint tea to go on the house. Well this gem of a place has been there 28 years and I missed 20 of them. But there's a new tradition! This is gonna be my go to spot! read more

Cafe Paprika - Lamb Shank, Couscous, veggies - Moroccan Near Me - Aurora, Colorado

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Cafe paprika provides an outstanding dining experience with excellent service and a welcoming atmosphere. The dishes are delicious and authentically prepared, making it a must-visit for anyone craving flavorful cuisine. Highly recommended!" read more

Bummer! It LOOKS so good but the taste is so BAD. Here's the gist of it: We stopped in and were charmed by decor and the owner. What a wonderful friendly man. Everything on the menu looked great. Mint tea was great. We started with the Middle Eastern combo appetizer. The falafel was good but the hummus was MUSHY and the baba ghanouj was pasty and tasted something awful. Really AWFUL. Bad eggplant maybe? The chicken couscous was DISAPPOINTING. It had no flavor. Both the chicken and the vegetables. I know! How could it be? The vegetables were surely cooked but they didn't taste stewed. You know, the kind of stewed that seeps into the couscous on your dish? I think it needed some sauce to round it out. WORSE? The couscous came out COLD. I think they just prepared it the day before and then heated up some chicken on the plate. I mean, this couscous came out temperate COLD like straight out of the freezer. The apricot chicken was pretty alright. I'll spare you the..um..bathroom aftermath. read more

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