Morocco is home to many eccentric foods and exotic delicacies. The Jemaa el-Fnaa square, in the heart of Marrakech’s Medina, is host to various food vendors selling dried fruits and nuts, and fresh-squeezed juice.
Fruit and nut vendor in Jemaa el-Fnaa.
Juice vendor in Jemaa el-Fnaa.
Surrounding the Jemaa el-Fnaa are several casual restaurants serving traditional Moroccan cuisine. Couscous, a North African dish of granular semolina typically served with meats or vegetables, is likely the most recognizable Moroccan dish outside of Morocco. The cuisine I savored most in Marrakech was the tagine, a Berber dish from North Africa named after the heavy clay pot in which it’s cooked. Tagine meat is slow-cooked at low temperatures and commonly served with figs or apricots. And, of course, I can’t forget the sweet Jasmine tea served with each meal.
Tagine dish and couscous with vegetables.
Lamb tagine with apricot.
By night, Jemaa el Fnaa is transposed into a colossal food court, sprawling with food stalls as far as the eye can see. Food in the stalls ranges from the bizarre (lamb brains and snails) to the more conventional (vegetable dishes and fried foods). Coucous and tagine are also available readily for consumption.
Food stalls in Jemaa el-Fnaa.
Arabic Coca-Cola.
Lamb tongue and Moroccan spices.
Snails, a delicacy in the U.S., are common and inexpensive in Morocco.
Fried foods.
Moroccan dinner consisting of couscous with vegetables, bread, olives and meat kabobs.
The souks should not be overlooked as a place to find inexpensive authentic Moroccan cuisine. Lamb is a prominent meat in Morocco, and no part is spared. From Andrew Zimmern’s “lamb alley,” where we could partake in all parts of the lamb, to vendors selling olives and assorted pastries, our palates were consistently pampered.
Olive vendor.
Snail vendor. Bowl of snails cost $1 USD.
We were introduced to this small restaurant, located deep in the souks, by a vendor who sold us several scarves.
Restaurant.
Traditional Moroccan starters including bread, salad and olives.
Moroccan meats.
No recollection!
If you grow tired of the often repetitive dishes served in the Medina (more couscous, please!) and it’s fine dining you’re after, you can exit the Medina and head to the Gueliz, the modern district of Marrakech. We chose to eat at Villa Rosa, a contemporary restaurant serving North African-infused French cuisine. The sultry decor of red velvet chairs and large mirrors created a seductive ambiance. While I no longer recall the specific dishes we ordered, the food at Villa Rosa did not disappoint.
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