On her first trip to Cape Town, before her plane had even landed, Iranian-born Mozhdeh Mazhari knew that she was home, and that she would never leave.

She held out for her husband, Shahrokh Ansari, to join her and now they own and operate Persian Restaurant off Cape Town’s busy Kloof Street. Mozhdeh recently curated an astounding meal for me and two other diners.

Everything in this halaal friendly restaurant was designed for comfort. The decor and furniture made you want to recline, eat slowly and savor your food over drinks with friends.

The meal began with jewel-bright drinks served up to our table: Cucumber and mint; Persian lemonade with saffron; and powdered rose flower. They tasted as beautiful and exotic as they sounded, and the secret, Mozhdeh said, is boiled sugar. Boiled sugar? That’s cooking the hard way.

A quick lesson in Persian food, courtesy of our hostess: “Persian food must be slow cooked,” Mazhari told us. “Everything must be soft. Never crispy. No oil. Never dry.”

The result? Everything is cooked with butter, slowly.

The starter plate at Persian Restaurant included naan paneer sabzi (bread served with feta); mirza ghasemi (smoked roast eggplant); and paneer vareshte (roasted feta with egg, garlic and dill). Everything was made from scratch including the yogurt, and was served with tafoom — a pita-like bread.

The restaurant is open from 10 a.m. to 1 a.m., and it gets a considerable amount of business from late-night diners who missed out at the bar restaurants because the bars close early. “People can eat here after midnight,” Mozhdeh said.

By the time the main courses arrived, we were already full but we didn’t let that stop us. There was a dish with lamb, tomato, eggplant and Persian spices; chicken kabob marinated in saffron and lemon yogurt, and another lamb dish made with beans and peas served with pickled green vegetables and yogurt.

All these came with saffron rice with barberries — sweet and sour berries that look like dried cranberries.

Mozhdeh was secretive about her rice. “Saffron rice is a three-step process,” she said. “I can’t tell you. It’s my secret but it includes butter and saffron.”

The amazing Persian Restaurant menu is available online. Check it out on Facebook at phf Cape Town. Or save yourself the effort and just go eat there.