18 amazing places to eat in Marrakech, from riads to rooftops

More insider guides for planning a trip to Marrakech

1. 48 hours

2. Hotels

3. Restaurants

4. Attractions

5. Nightlife

6. Shopping

The Moroccan table reflects the influence of the country’s multi-cultural history, blending native Berber traditions with the flavours of Andalusian Spain, France and Arabia. It is one of the great cuisines of the world, and signature dishes include a magnificent seven salad vegetarian starter, tagine (a slow-cooked stew combining meat with fruit) and couscous. But newer restaurants are now raiding grandma’s recipes for richly flavoured Atlantic fish dishes, spicy offal and earthy bowls of lentil and Moroccan pasta. In addition, many restaurants in the Ville Nouvelle (New Town) serve fusion French food, Medi-Moroccan and now even Asian cuisine. In fact, the city is experiencing something of a restaurant revolution at the moment, so watch this space for exciting new openings.

Bab Doukkala, Medina

El Fenn

One of the best riad restaurants is at Vanessa Branson’s colourful El Fenn. Here beneath the stars, with sterling views of the Koutoubia minaret, you can dine on Ahmad Elhardoun’s inventive Moroccan menu packed full of tastebud tingling ingredients sourced from El Fenn’s Ourika Valley farms. The chicken ballotine with preserved lemon is an ingenious reimagining of a traditional tagine, while the fresh gazpacho with Argan oil and the John Dory with celery mousseline and tarragon emulsion demonstrate superbly subtle flavours. In winter, the action moves inside the theatrically styled restaurant where candles twinkle like stars in the mirrored ceiling.

Contact: 00 212 524 441 220; el-fenn.com
Prices: £££
Opening times: Daily, 12pm-12am
Reservations: Essential

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Riad Noir d’Ivoire

Head out on an adventure to find this palatial riad in a quiet western corner of the medina and you’ll be rewarded with some very refined modern Moroccan cooking courtesy of executive chef Youssef Jbari. Start with the profoundly flavourful lobster bisque with a single succulent scallop, and follow it up with a plate of St Pierre fish with the most delicate spoon of mashed potato, a charred fennel bulb and crunchy asparagus. Each flavour on the plate is distinct but balanced, married harmoniously with impeccable seasoning. It is a revelation: modern, farm-to-table Moroccan cuisine, unfussy and yet exceptional. To accompany it, you also have the benefit of 3000-bottle wine cellar and, in the future, an in-house sommelier will be on hand to guide you through the selection.

Contact: 00 212 524 380 975; noir-d-ivoire.com
Prices: £££
Opening times: Daily, 12pm-3pm, 7pm-11pm
Reservations: Essential
Best table: For special occasions, consider a bespoke, multi-course dinner at the chef’s table (£130 per person)

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Le Jardin

Nothing caps a day of triumphant souk shopping like lunch in this green-hued oasis. Take a seat beneath a canopy of banana leaves, bamboo and palms, and watch tiny tortoises inch across the iridescent green floor-tiles. Then order up a light Moroccan salad or club sandwich, accompanied by an orange and beet smoothie or a milky date shake. There are Moroccan dishes, too, but portions are smaller than usual and they go easy on the oil. After all, you’ll want to look svelte in the designer kaftan you’ll no doubt purchase from Norya Ayron’s pop-up shop on the mezzanine.

Contact: 00 212 524 378 295; lejardinmarrakech.com
Prices: ££
Opening times: Daily, 10am-12am
Reservations: Advised

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Kafé Fnaque Berbère

Located on a strategic corner of Souk Laksour, this long-standing bookshop is a medina institution. Come and browse the excellent selection of books on Morocco then take the easy-to-miss stairs to the left, pass through the tiny kitchen and find a pew in the brightly coloured, simply furnished café upstairs. It’s a quiet and restful haven in the hectic souk and is filled with a large selection of interesting books. You can spend hours here nested among cushions, distractedly scooping up delicious hummus or enjoying excellent sandwiches and well-cooked tagines.

Address: Rue Laksour
Contact: 00 212 649 583 165
Prices: £
Opening times: Daily, 10am-9pm

Derb Debacchi and Kaat Benahid, Medina

Nomad

Kamal Laftimi is one of Marrakech’s most creative entrepreneurs and his modern Moroccan eatery and rooftop cocktail bar is one of the most popular restaurants in the medina. The sleek sand-coloured sofas and black-and-white tiled tables feel more Scandi-chic than the usual blast of Moroccan colour. The menu, too, is modern, featuring calamari marinated in cumin served with a dash of spicy harissa and saffron-scented date cake with salted caramel ice cream. It’s also the first place in the medina to take the business of crafting cocktails seriously with good cucumber martinis and moreish icy mojitos.

Contact: 00 212 524 381 609, nomadmarrakech.com
Prices: ££
Opening times: Daily, 11am-11pm
Reservations: Recommended

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Naima

This tiny, no-frills place buried in the heart of the souks does one thing – couscous – and does it well. There’s no menu, seating is Moroccan style around a communal dish that everyone tucks into, and portions are huge. Sometimes they also do a tasty chicken tagine, either way you can expect a hearty home cooked meal served with gallons of mint tea. Starters and dessert are simple, including grilled peppers and bread and usually some fruit to finish. Payment is by cash only and the food takes a little while to arrive as everything is cooked to order. A three-course meal costs around MAD 98 (£8).

Contact: 00 212 667 846 370;see Facebook page
Prices: £
Opening times: Daily, 11am-10pm

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Derb Debbachi, Medina

Le Trou au Mur

James Wix’s rather smart medina restaurant is dedicated to 'grandma’s recipes', meaning there's a menu full of unusual dishes. Given that they are such a staple of the Moroccan table, some offal dishes are showcased here. Don’t shy away from them, they are very tasty and executed in a refined manner. Other highlights include berkoukesh (a handmade Moroccan pasta in a herb and tomato sauce), tride (shredded pancakes with lentils, chicken and saffron) and a succulent mechoui of slow-cooked lamb cooked in a traditional clay oven. Aside from the food, the atmosphere is extremely convivial, the service swift and professional, and the restaurant has a smart graphic look with black-and-white zellij tiled floors and chairs sporting period prints from the photographic museum a few doors down. It certainly sets a new bar for the medina.

Contact: 00 212 524 384 900; letrouaumur.com
Prices: ££
Opening times: Wed-Mon, 12.30pm-3pm, 6.30pm-12am; closed Tues
Reservations: Helpful

Riads Zitoun and The Kasbah, Medina

Naranj

This is a first for the medina – a top class Lebanese serving an excellent menu of grilled and marinated meats and delicious salads (most of which can be shared). The interior is unusually hip for the area, with whitewashed walls, stripy banquettes and filigree lanterns that cast magical shadows on the walls. The cooking, too, is coolly classic and well-executed. The kibbeh is particularly good, as is the chicken salad with orange and saffron vinaigrette. Desserts have a European twist, as the owners emigrated here by way of Vienna. Don’t miss the divine almonds with mascarpone, pomegranate and orange blossom.

Contact: 00 212 524 386 805, naranj.ma
Prices: ££
Opening times: Daily, 11am-11pm
Reservations: Advised

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La Famille

Sometimes, when the Saharan sun is beating down, all you want to do is retreat to the shade of the nearest tree. But in a high urban city devoid of greenery that is easier said than done. That’s what makes La Famille such a find, situated as it is in a large enclosed garden with tables scattered beneath banana and olive trees. The vegetarian, Mediterranean menu is fresh and simple and changes regularly. The salads, in particular, are highly recommended. On site, you’ll also find a cute shop stocking some lovely leather goods, jewellery, ceramics and baskets.

Contact: 00 212 524 385 295, facebook.com/La-famille-marrakech
Prices: £
Opening times: Tue-Sun, 12pm-4.30pm
Reservations: Advised

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Café Clock

The sibling of Mike Richardson’s wildly successful Café Clock in Fez, this Marrakech outpost is proving just as popular. Housed in an old school in the Kasbah, the light-filled courtyard provides a perfect spot for mint tea and storytelling workshops, while resident yogis instruct stressed-out city breakers in mindful breathing on the roof terraces. Star chef Tariq Hadine has also relocated here from Fez and works his magic on the seasonal Marrakshi menu of fresh salads, sandwiches and the café’s signature camel burger. On Sunday, join locals for Rock the Kasbah sunset concerts.

Contact: 00 212 524 378 367; cafeclock.com
Prices: ££
Opening times: Daily, 10am-10pm

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Ville Nouvelle

Al Fassia

Al Fassia is one of the leading lights of the Marrakech dining scene. It’s not just the richly-hued dining room with its cushion-strewn baquettes and heavy white tablecloths that sets it apart, but the Fassi heritage of the Chaab sisters who run the place, which brings a touch of culinary refinement to many traditional dishes. The nine-dish mezze to start is a mini feast in its own right, and many people stop there, but that would be missing out on the memorable pumpkin and lamb tagine and the delicious slow-roast lamb shoulder studded with almonds.

Contact: 00 212 524 43 40 60; alfassia.com
Prices: £££
Opening times: Wed-Mon, 12pm-2.30pm, 7.30pm-11pm
Reservations: Essential

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Le Jardin, Royal Mansour

Chef Yannick Alléno is one of the most famous French chefs in the world, with two, three-starred Michelin restaurants to his name. You can, therefore, be assured of great things at his beautiful garden restaurant set at the heart of the Royal Mansour’s gorgeously landscaped gardens (courtesy of Luis Vallejo). Inspired by the East-meets-West influences of the Silk Road, and focused on a traditional slow-cooking technique over coal, the exciting menu features a delightful selection of sharing plates, ranging from 'raw' dishes featuring sea bream from Agadir and Atlantic tuna, to 'fire-cooked' plates of fried eggplant with orange-blossom honey and picanha beef with a spicy barbecue sauce. In addition, there’s a super selection of inventive salads, something that is generally hard to find in Marrakech.

Contact: 00 212 529 808 282; royalmansour.com
Prices: £££
Opening times: Daily, 12pm-4.30pm
Reservations: Essential

Grand Café de la Poste

This brasserie has been on the Marrakech scene since it served as a coffeehouse and postal relay in the 1920s. Jacques Majorelle and General Lyautey nursed their coffee on the same terrace, where expats, Moroccans and tourists now sit sipping bottomless bottles of Val d’Argan Rosé. The interiors, revamped by Studio KO in 2005, speak to the building's history; picture linen-covered bistro tables and potted fan palms set around a grand, central, double-legged staircase, with ceiling fans spinning woozily overhead. The classic bistro menu is good rather than groundbreaking, but then most punters come here for a good glass of rosé and an earful of gossip.

Contact: 00 212 524 433 038; grandcafedelaposte.restaurant
Prices: £££
Opening times: Daily, 8am-1am
Reservations: Recommended

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Chez Mado

In meat-focused Marrakech, this first-class fish restaurant is a relief. French chef Alex Chaussetier has made it his mission to source and serve the best Moroccan seafood, including succulent Oualidia oysters, large Atlantic prawns and delicate plates of sole meunière. The highlight is, of course, the towering seafood platters which you can enjoy with a chilled bottle of Pouilly Fume. The contemporary restaurant with its light oak tables, low-backed chairs and stripey table runners evokes a seaside vibe, and at the weekend there’s often live music. The menu du jour is excellent value at MAD 98-122 (£8-10).

Contact: 00 212 524 421 494, facebook.com/chez-mado-marrakech
Prices: ££
Opening times: Mon-Sat, 12pm-3pm, 7pm-11.30pm; Sun, 7pm-11.30pm
Reservations: Recommended

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Amal Center

At the Amal Center you can both eat well and feel good about it as every penny of your lunch money goes to supporting Amal’s non-profit which offers paid internships, literacy programmes and culinary training to women in need. The regularly changing menu also features less common Moroccan dishes such as fish balls, Moroccan tortilla and calamari salad. Given that many of the women who work here are mothers, children are well catered for with a crèche full of toys, games and art supplies. Cookery classes are also offered. Payment is by cash only.

Contact: 00 212 524 446 896; amalnonprofit.org
Prices: £
Opening times: Daily, 12pm-4pm 
Reservations: Advised

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+61

This breezy, light-filled restaurant with its brass fittings, marble-topped tables and soft pastel accents is set to turn a lot of heads in Marrakech. It is the brainchild of Australian Cassandra Karinsky who, after settling here, was at a loss to find the sort of modern, ingredient-focused eatery that she was used to in Australia. So, with a little help from some friends at Nomad, she launched the lovely +61 with its inventive, ever-changing, modern, seasonal menu. Favourites include a homemade ricotta with roasted red peppers, balsamic-glazed lamb ribs, chargrilled sirloin sandwiches with eggplant relish, and a welcome selection of delicious vegetarian sides. Desserts are equally good, including the most fragrant fig frangipani tart accompanied with an intense shot of real espresso.

Contact: 00 212 524 207 020; plus61.com
Prices: ££
Opening times: Monday-Saturday, 12pm-4pm; Thursday-Saturday, 7pm-10pm
Reservations: Helpful

Palmeraie

Ling Ling

Lovely Ling Ling, Hakkasan’s first African outlet, is housed in the west-wing of the Mandarin Oriental with huge arched windows and a long terrace looking out over the gardens. It has a sleek, graphic interior designed by Parisian duo Gilles & Bossier, which suits chef Tong Chee Hwee’s fine-dining Cantonese menu. Order small plates of golden fried chicken with mango salsa, vegetarian truffle rolls or Chilean seabass with honey and pair with one of Marrakech’s most imaginative cocktail offerings such as the Golden Lingyu, which mixes Julio Resposado tequila with garden geranium, ginger, vanilla, chilli, lime and apple. Mains £10-45.

Contact: 00 212 524 29 88 88; mandarinoriental.com
Prices: £££
Opening times: Sun-Thu, 7pm-midnight; Fri-Sat, 7pm-1am (closed mid-May-mid-June)
Reservations: Essential

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16 Kawa

This juice-bar-cum-café feels more Miami than Marrakech with its bright, jaunty interior, extensive juice bar and seriously hip staff. Situated opposite the new Musée Yves St Laurent and next to the fashionable 16 Majorelle concept store, it attracts a smart, local crowd to its sunny terrace at lunch time. They come to sip detox smoothies and lunch on couscous or quinoa salad bowls, followed by some homemade cakes and macaroons. For more hungry museum goers, there’s a rather good burger or a club sandwich, alongside a selection of flavourful wraps. Finish up with a couple of scoops of homemade ice cream.

Contact: 00 212 524 31 00 16; 16cafe.com
Prices: £
Opening times: Daily, 8am-8pm
Reservations: Not necessary