Last year I spent a week in Morocco. We started our trip in Marrakech and made our way to the Atlas Mountains and the Desert, but not before sampling some of the delightful food options around the city. With so many choices, selecting a restaurant (and of course finding it!) can be difficult, so here are my top 5 places you must visit whilst you are in Marrakech.
1) JEMAA EL FNA
First on the list has to be the main square and market in the centre of Marrakech, Jemaa el Fna. During the day the square is filled with orange juice stands and entertainers, but don’t get too distracted by all the food options available as you may end up with a snake or monkey on your shoulder!
At night, the square transforms into a smokey aromatic food lovers paradise, offering anything from hot flavoured snails to traditional tagine to Moroccan pastries and sweets. Trust me, you won’t leave this spot hungry!
2) NOMAD
This rooftop restaurant is an oasis above the medina. After a morning of bargaining for spices and scarves if you are prepared to do a little searching in the souk behind the Jemaa El Fna for Nomad (download City Maps To Go or Google Maps in advance!), you will be rewarded with a calm and tranquil spot to enjoy your lunch.
Nomad serves up what’s described as modern Moroccan food based on simplicity, using fresh local produce and spice to create twists on traditional recipes. I highly recommend the courgette and zucchini feta fritters!
3) COMPTOIR DARNA
If it’s good enough for David Beckham’s 40th Birthday then it’s good enough for me! Walking into this dimly lit restaurant you are immediately drawn into the lively yet romantic atmosphere. We had a table upstairs right next to a small dance floor, where we were treated to a show of traditional Moroccan music, belly dancers and ladies balancing elaborate trays with candles on their heads.
The entertainment and atmosphere alone make this place worth a visit, but the food itself is truly the reason why Comptoir Darna is so popular! We selected a few items from the menu including the traditional lamb tagine which was absolutely delicious, washed down with a few cocktails.
Later in the evening, the restaurant turns into a nightclub where you can smoke traditional hookah and party the night away until 3am before calling it a night and heading back to your Riad!
Our Top Places To Stay In Marrakech
- Le Maison Arabe
- Riad Be Marrakech
- Four Seasons Resort Marrakech
- Find the best price on hotels in Marrakech, Morocco
- Related Post: The Best Hotels and Riads in Marrakech
4) LIMONI
This was one of my favourite places in Marrakech! As with most places within the walled city it took a little searching to find, but once we did we found we were transported from the hustle and bustle into an oasis of calm.
Limoni serves delicious Italian to you in a lemon tree filled courtyard, perfect for an early evening meal so you can enjoy the location as the sun slowly goes down. It’s truly worth the effort to find, just make sure you have plenty of patience as you begin your search!
5) GRANDE CAFE DE LA POSTE
If you are planning a visit to the Jardin Marjorelle then a stop for lunch at the Grande Cafe De La Poste beforehand is a must! Sitting outside the walls of the Medina and dating back to the 1920’s this colonial-style venue re-opened in 2005 and has been serving up elegant cuisine in beautiful surroundings ever since!
To leave you with one last tip, at sunset make your way up to Cafe De France. The food here is pretty basic so I wouldn’t recommend it for your dinner, but it’s a great place for a traditional mint tea and incredible views of the sun going down over the main square.
We hope that this article has inspired you to visit Marrakech and find some of these delicious dining spots. If you have any questions about the destination or have your own travel tips to share please leave these in the comments below.
Want to share your own travel tips by guest writing for We Are Travel Girls? Go to our Contribute page for guidelines and to submit your article.
Our Top Places To Stay In Marrakech
- Le Maison Arabe
- Riad Be Marrakech
- Four Seasons Resort Marrakech
- Find the best price on hotels in Marrakech, Morocco
- Sign up to AirBnB with this link and receive a US $35 off your first booking
Read More About Morocco
- Camping In The Sahara Desert
- 5 Tips For Female Travellers In Morocco
- 5 Things You Must Do In Marrakech
- 5 Reasons To Go To Chefchaouen, Morocco
- 7 Most Instagrammable Spots In Fez
We Are Travel Girls Founder Becky van Dijk of BeckyvanDijk.com
Connect with Becky Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube
Pin For Later
This website is a free resource and to keep it free for our readers we may use affiliate links in our articles. If you make a purchase via the links on our site you will pay the same price, but we may receive a small percentage which helps us to keep bringing you new and informative travel content every day! Any products we endorse we personally use and love. Please see our Disclosures for more information.
Isabella says
Be very wary of the market stalls in the main square at night. We were persuaded by hustlers into one who sounded convincing. We were taken to choose whichever dish we wanted on display. Whilst waiting , several dishes were brought to us which we hadn’t ordered and we, naively, thought that they were complimentary. None of them were really edible. The bread that was laid out on the tables was stale too. Our main course eventually arrived. We hardly ate any of it because it wasn’t at all nice. We were shocked at the end to be given a bill of 550 DNS, everything itemised, including the bread. We may just as well have thrown the money done the drain. The food was awful and it was a total rip off. The atmosphere on the square was amazing with all the musicians and dancers. Perhaps we were just unlucky. All the other places we dined at served good food and were very reasonably priced.
We Are Travel Girls says
Hi Isabella! So sorry your experience was so bad, I guess it could be hit or miss when you are dining in the square. We actually had a really amazing meal one night and an average meal the second time at a different stall. Its hard to know which ones are the best or what is best to order. We actually asked other people what the ordered to decide. Hope you loved the rest of your Marrakech experience though! XO, Becky
Khadijah says
What happened to you was really unfortunate but it does sometimes happen to visitors.
One thing to do to help avoid being swindled is to walk around the stalls and see where the Moroccans are eating.
You will never see them sitting at an inferior restaurant.
Morocco can be a land of extremes… in Kindness and in it’s Opposite.
My hope is that next time you visit Morocco your time is a Happy and Healthy one
Patricia Ybarra says
I love dar Cherifa, impressionant decoration, good food, great rooftop terrace. Kosybar at Place des ferblantiers, also great terrace, very good food, jazz soirés. Bakchich Cafe, Riad Zitoun Jedid, close to Cafe de France at Jemaa el Fna, fancy deco, varied menu and young ambience