6164 E Riverside Blvd.
Rockford, IL
815-877-0300
We happened to stumble upon the Saffron Bistro accidentally last Friday. At a wine tasting, the shop owner mentioned having the Moroccan restaurant in town cater his next tasting. Anyone that knows anything about Rockford, Illinois knows that the choices in restaurants are limited at best. You're pretty much stuck with the typical chain restaurants. After hearing about it, I had to go.
Arriving around 9 PM, we managed to avoid most of the rush. The restaurant was average size, about 15-20 tables. The wine list was average with around 15 bottles on the menu. I ordered the beef brochette, and my fellow diners ordered the baked salmon and the lamb chops. The meal started with a bowl of cream of asparagus soup which was light and extremely tasty and satisfying and inspired me to make my own asparagus soup later on over the weekend. The beef was served with asparagus spears and a bed of saffron rice. the beef was moist and tasty, but a little tough - it probably could have used to be marinated a bit more. The rice and asparagus was a fantastic compliment to the beef.
I did not have an opportunity to taste my fellow diner's meals, but I was told that they were fabulous.
Pricing was a little pricey for Rockford (the beef was $18 and the chops were $28 - they were the special that evening). Overall, the value was worth the price of the meal. On certain Fridays they even have belly dancing and tango dancers and tapas (Argentina and Spain, whatever). I plan on going back, and I recommend you try it as well.
