Babouche Lounge and Restaurant, a much-needed addition to the stale Soho dining scene, opens its doors on Wednesday. It’s a sister to Barbes, one of the city’s better Moroccan places (not that there are very many of them), but given the ritzier environs and its expanded menu, Babouche is clearly the more ambitious eatery. Still, they’ll be serving traditional North African dishes like couscous and various tajines, the slow-cooked clay-pot dishes most associated with Morocco. The room, many of whose features (a large brass door, mosaic atrium walls, a water fountain) were made in Morocco specifically for the restaurant, sounds pretty classy, too. We trust that there won’t be any hookahs present.
Babouche Lounge and Restaurant, 92 Prince St., nr. Mercer St.; 212-219-8155.
