Restaurant Review: Cafe Aion

On a trip to Southern Spain and Morocco, I was invited into the home of a local Moroccan restaurateur for a casual late-night dinner.

In attendance were about 14 people, all seated closely together at a long wooden table. This physical closeness paired with the abundance of wine fostered quick community, even though most were strangers to me.

The table was laden with vessels of earthenware crockery filled with olives and dried fruit. Placed down the center were ceramic pitchers of rose-scented water, wine bottles and flickering candles. There was beauty in the simplicity of the table setting, a warm, relaxed hospitality felt in its offerings.

Dinner at Cafe Aion on the Hill in Boulder reminded me of that lovely evening in many ways.

The dining room at Cafe Aion is cozy and quaint. Wooden tables, a hand-built bar and a Moroccan blue accent wall adorned with black-and-white photos are really the only design elements you'll notice. A peekaboo window lets you peer directly into the restaurant's soul, the kitchen, where chef Dakota Soifer creates his North African and Spanish tapas-style cuisine.

A snack of succulent house olives with preserved lemon and rosemary ($4) and a perfectly mixed Aion jalapeno margarita ($6) warmed me. The server was engaged and informative, suggesting a Spanish white for my guest when he arrived. We ordered a sampling of 6 small plates, most of which were enthusiastically recommended. Aion fried cauliflower ($7) served with saffron yogurt, cumin and lemon didn't remain on the plate very long. The browned and crisped florets acted as the perfect vehicle for dipping into the luxurious sauce.

James Ranch Belford cheese ($8) arrived with crostini and a Moroccan spiced compote. I'd never tasted this cow's milk cheese before; it hails from Durango and is reminiscent of gouda, though harder and infinitely more tangy. I enjoyed how it mingled with the fruitiness of the compote. This cheese dish is also intelligently offered as a dessert option, and I'd seriously considered the encore.

As the table started to fill up with clay vessels of olives, cheese, dipping sauces, small plates and wine, a slight hint of deja vu seeped into my consciousness. I was basking in the glow of that warm, relaxed Moroccan hospitality again.

I was coaxed out of my reverie by the arrival of quinoa salad with Turkish apricots, almonds and preserved lemon ($7) and house made cotechino sausage with lentils du Puy ($11) The quinoa salad had a nutty crunch of sliced almonds and a hint of balanced sweetness.

It's commendable that Cafe Aion creates its own charcuterie, but I found the cotechino lacking flavor. The monochromatic presentation of brown sausage rounds atop brown lentils was drab and unappealing, though after a brief chat with Soifer about his process, I'm looking forward to trying the house cured Genoa salami on my next visit.

A sharable portion of Moroccan style braised Long Farm pork with apricots ($13) was graciously and professionally re-fired, when we discovered that our portion hadn't received any apricots. Another heaping serving along with a side of extra Turkish dried apricots arrived and we devoured every tender morsel.

It was a face-off between ordering the duck confit or the Hazel Dell oyster mushroom dish. After remarking about the rampant appearance of both items on seemingly every menu in Boulder, we chose the duck confit served with farro, pomegranates and walnuts ($16). I was disappointed in this selection. The confit leg was small, bony, and overly salty, for the price I didn't think there was real value either. We should have ordered the mushrooms that our server suggested "were like buttuh," as she hadn't steered us wrong on anything else thus far.

We lingered over our wine, enjoying the sense of wellbeing that comes with satiety. We each ordered an ozo coffee ($3) and chose to share the Tcho chocolate torte with Noosa honey yogurt ($7) The pure flavor of quality chocolate was apparent. Our forks dueled over the last remnants of honey yogurt. I felt so at home, I was tempted to lick the plate, but thankfully managed to restrain myself.

Cafe Aion fosters an environment that parallels their mission: providing straightforward, honest presentations of Spanish and North African inspired fare. It stands out among other small plate restaurants by adding its own unique nuance to local Front Range cuisine. Cafe Aion invites you into its hearth for dinner every Tuesday through Saturday night. You should take them up on their gracious invitation, you'll be happy you did.