Chef Adam Bernstein isn’t shy about why he launched Café Maroc, a Moroccan eatery, this past June. “I’ve worked too hard next door,” at the adjacent, upscale Adam’s Place, Bernstein admits, “and I’m tired. I needed something that was fun and playful.”

Chef Adam Bernstein. Photo: Todd Cooper.

Luckily, Bernstein wasn’t too bushed to devise a sustainability game plan for his casual new restaurant. Located on East Broadway where Bernstein’s jazz club, Luna, used to be, Café Maroc buys locally and organically whenever possible. My water glass, Bernstein tells me, is filled with harvested Oregon rainwater; the sprig of mint soaking in my tea hails from Bernstein’s backyard.

Conservation is key in Moroccan cooking, Bernstein explains. “It’s about efficiency in a place where water and fuel mean a lot.” 

“Most people probably don’t know that we’ve been the leader in green and sustainable and local for a long time,” at Adam’s Place, observes the third-generation restaurateur. “We’re making decisions that are forward-thinking.” Bernstein carries this idea through to the Maroc design, incorporating tin cans claiming new life as lanterns and microfiber seat covers to simulate leather. 

The décor, a collaborative effort by Jillian Rivas Davila of Portland’s Stoa Studio and Jewel Murphy of Eugene’s own Passionflower Design, strives for both authenticity and whimsy. An armless Venus sporting a fez graces a tiled niche while vintage suitcases and world globes suggest travel and adventure. Diners have their choice of sitting on chairs or reclining on the floor on comfy cushions and can use silverware or practice the traditional Moroccan method of eating with their hands. The place even offers belly dancers several times a week.

Maroc’s tagine-style cooking combines meat, fruit, vegetables and even dessert into a single entrée. “It’s your complete meal,” Bernstein says. Menu highlights include a bstilla phyllo pastry with chicken and cinnamon (see recipe, page 26), a vegetarian tempeh artichoke tagine and a lamb tagine with honey, saffron and almonds. 

“I’ve almost opened a Moroccan restaurant here three times,” says Bernstein of his abiding love for the Arabic dining experience. “When I was younger, I worked with a French Moroccan chef at a bistro in New York. I fell in love with ‘sweet and savory’ as an identity.”

The intervening decades have allowed Bernstein plenty of time for experimentation, and he’s obviously proud of the results: “We’ve had Tunisians and Moroccans in here who have said, ‘You’re there.’” 

Café Maroc, 28 E. Broadway, opens at 5 pm daily. 434-5862.