January 17, 2009 -- I felt I was getting to know Marco from Cults Cafe rather well even although I had not yet met him.

I was on the mobile phone to him again asking for directions. My navigational skills are not the best and I had ended up at least half-a-mile from his restaurant. As usual, I had set off without really knowing where I was supposed to be going.

He explained patiently where I had gone wrong, and getting there was simplicity itself really.

Cults Café is tucked away behind a row of shops on the main road through Cults, just outside Aberdeen. And, better still, it has a large car park just outside, which meant we could just drive straight up to the front door. It’s not often you have this luxury, especially in Aberdeen.

We were through the doorway and taking in the relaxed, softly lit and quite pleasing surroundings in the cosy, medium-sized dining-room. My mood suddenly changed as I was gripped by panic on realising that something very dear to my heart was missing from this welcoming scene – drink.

It had slipped my mind that this was a bring-your-own-booze establishment as no alcohol was sold on the premises. Marco pointed out a nearby off-licence, which I thought must find the Cults Café’s lack of drink rather attractive.

In the end, we decided to skip the booze. After all, if we couldn’t do without a drink for an hour or two what did that say about us? Actually, that was probably pushing our endurance to the limit, but we thought we would make it somehow.

Marco guided us to a table near the window and we began studying the menu. It reflected our host’s own travels and background, with influences from France, North Africa and Greece. This had spilled on to the menu, with a nice range of dishes.

For starters, it was vegetarian bourek for me – a fried rolled pastry filled with mashed potato, cheese and herbs with sweet chilli and Greek tzatziki sauce. I only chose the vegetarian option as my wife had jumped in ahead of me and snaffled the mince and onions bourek.

These turned out to be an Algerian-style version of spring rolls, but not with the same thickness. They were thinner and longer than expected, rather than thick. We had three each and swapped around between us to get the best of both worlds. The pastry was light and flaky and we found it quite an unusual and pleasant starter.

Our engaging host was quite happy to stay and chat with us about his background, the dishes and the restaurant. He also serves breakfasts and lunches, and I noticed that a Parisian breakfast was among the dishes on offer for morning visitors.

We wondered whether or not the bring-your-own-drink approach was popular with diners. He said it was an option they liked as there was only one other restaurant that he knew of in Aberdeen that did not sell alcohol. The cash saving alone for guests would probably be quite considerable if they picked up cut-price supermarket offers, especially for a large party or private functions, which Cults Café also caters for.

For mains, it was chicken tagine for me with a cumin and coriander sauce, tomatoes, green olives and rice. For my wife, it was couscous royale – a generous serving of couscous topped with lamb, chicken and home-made minced-meat sausage similar to a kebab and baby carrots.

These really were a striking combination of colours and contrasts straight from their North African roots which brightened up an otherwise dreary Saturday night in the north-east.

We expected our taste buds to explode with ecstasy, but the flavours were not as spicy or rich as we had hoped for. Perhaps we had been dazzled by the presentation and expected too much.

For puddings, I chose citrus lemon tart and my wife caramello crunch cheesecake. Both were a light and delicious way to end the evening.

After a pleasant meal in the company of Marco, and settling our £54 bill, which included soft drinks and coffees, we bade our farewells. I glanced at my watch. Time for a drink, I thought.

Cults Café,
The Courtyard,
Cults, Aberdeen
Phone 01224 862690