This review marks my 2,200th! It's fitting that I review Marwan's Global Bistro.
I did a bit of research on places to eat in Port Perry before meeting up with a friend here. I normally wing it, but my friend is vegan and I didn't want us to go into an eatery where all she could eat is a salad. I love salad, but some variety is needed.
I found Marwan's Global Bistro that offers a mix of vegan and meat options. Perfect! It also has a patio.
We were there on a Saturday. After exercising our debit and credit cards, we decided to rest our muscular arms (haha) and have a late lunch. We looked up at the sky and it was getting cloudy. As much as we wanted to sit on the patio, we decided it was better to dine in.
The only confusion that I had was a QR code posted on the window. I tried scanning it. A female staff member said that it was only for staff. The sign didn't mention that point, so ignore it if you're a customer.
The woman asked if we had a reservation. We didn't. There were thankfully two available tables at nearly 4 pm. We went with the one furthest away from a group of six women who were loud, likely because they hadn't seen one another for ages.
Marwan's has an interesting setup. It is physically linked to The Port Social, which is a bar. If you order booze from Marwan's menu, it's from this bar. I don't know whether you can order munchies from the bar, but I'd suspect that they come from Marwan's. It's essentially a free-flowing entrance between the two establishments. It's cool.
We placed our orders and got the following for lunch:
- Diet Coke (both of us)
- Thai red vegan curry (my friend)
- Chicken tinga tacos (me)
- Marwan's mac and cheese (me)
While we waited for our food, a weather alert came on my phone for "northern Durham" for heavy downpours and wind gusts. I thought that Port Perry was in Scugog. Perhaps the border between Durham and Scugog is so minor that the town gets lumped into that municipality? What do I know? I'm a tourist figuring things out.
Sure enough, heavy rain came down and the wind was blowing it sideways. My friend and I looked at each other, thankful that we made the right call to dine inside. It was our first dine-in experience since the third lockdown had been lifted.
Our food came. It smelled and looked so good. We were hungry. We dug in.
I went with two appetizers. I like variety and being able to sample. The chicken tinga tacos were amazing. It had a zesty zing to them. The chicken morsels were juicy and yummy. The fresh diced tomatoes and onions brightened everything up. I loved the cheese and the cilantro didn't bug me at all. The tortillas were crispy on the outside and slightly chewy inside. Each taco was highly enjoyable to eat.
Marwan's mac and cheese. OMG. If you enjoy mac and cheese, get some here. Creamy sauce. Large cavatappi macaroni. Such a beautiful combination of cheddar and some other cheese that highlights the cheesy-good richness of that sauce on every cavatappi macaroni. Delicious!
My friend loved her Thai red vegan curry so much that her plate looked spotless when she was done eating. She loved how flavourful and spicy the curry was. She got a bunch of veggies and I was especially envious of the mushrooms. It was served with jasmine rice. I need to have some next time. For non-vegans, you can get the chicken version of it.
We felt so relaxed and comfortable eating here, chatting, and catching up with our lives. We decided to stay a bit longer. We couldn't fit traditional dessert into us, but I wanted an iced coffee with almond beverage. I'm not a regular coffee drinker, but it was hot outside and I felt like iced coffee. My friend first said that she didn't want anything, but she joined in on a liquid dessert and ordered a chai almond latte.
We both loved our drinks. My iced coffee wasn't bitter, which I appreciated. The almond beverage made this drink so smooth. It hit the spot to get a slightly sweet drink. My friend thoroughly enjoyed her chai almond latte. I could smell how fragrant it was across from her. I need to get one next time.
The washrooms are located on The Port Social side. We both used it on separate occasions (someone needed to babysit our purchases), and they were clean and nicely maintained.
We both paid with debit cards. Our transactions went through without a hitch.
We ended up with two different servers. I suppose that there was a shift change, but they were both so kind and accommodating.
We were both highly impressed with the food and drinks. It's a winner. Such a gem of an eatery! We'll need to return for more yumminess, and try a boozy drink or more next time.
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