Best Eats Around Morocco

Morocco continues to be a favorite destination for Nine Muses Travel clients because of its brilliant blend of culture, history, and uniquely delicious cuisine. Last autumn I traveled through Morocco with their national tourist office, and it was a dream come true. I've already booked a return trip in 2027, and you can join me! Have a sneak peek here.

Some of my favorite memories include a tagine lunch cooking class in Marrakech, marveling at all the colorful spices in the medina, visiting an argan oil farming collective owned all by women, and sharing a tasty mezze lunch beside a vineyard en route to Essaouira. Falling in love with Morocco is falling in love with all its flavors. I work with amazing suppliers (mentioned in this article), who provide all my clients with incredible experiences and unforgettable memories, all tailored to their interests and pace.

Is Morocco on your list for 2026, or maybe you'll come with me in 2027?

Excerpt of 12/2/2025 article produced by Virtuoso with Moroccan National Tourist Office can be found here.

Tagines, fresh oysters, and other must-try dishes in North Africa’s spice-filled wonderland.

A love affair with Moroccan food begins even before the first taste: Fragrant souks brimming with saffron, cinnamon, and ras el hanout. Roadside citrus groves on coastal northern drives. That first, perfectly overwhelming hit of cumin as a chef lifts the lid of a warm tagine. A centuries-deep blend of Amazigh, Arabian, Andalusian, Jewish, and Mediterranean influences has helped shape Morocco’s culinary identity, a complex mélange of flavors and cooking styles that’s led to hundreds of signature dishes, from hearty, chickpea-studded stews to fresh oysters served with locally grown limes.

Mealtime in this North African country isn’t just about nourishment – it’s how people come together. The good news: Locals frequently invite travelers to join their tables. Virtuoso advisors can work with tour operators and Morocco-based on-site tour connections, such as African Travel and Alizés Private, to design itineraries packed with immersive food experiences across the country. Private cooking classes, medina market tours, and tea tastings reveal the stories of Morocco’s gastronomic heritage – and the following five cities showcase it beautifully.

Marrakech: The Capital of Flavors 

In Marrakech, the Jemaa el-Fnaa marketplace and its surrounding souks are a sensory spectacle: Baskets with pyramid-shaped mounds of brightly colored spices and dried fruits beckon, street-stall grills sizzle with skewers of beef, and the hum of street vendors and shoppers carries through the labyrinth of alleyways. 

On market tours at Jemaa el-Fnaa – a UNESCO World Heritage site – guides lead travelers through the spice souks to smell ras el hanout blends, sample Moroccan mint tea, and learn about saffron from the southwestern town of Taliouine, the world’s largest saffron exporter. Stops for larger meals come easily, with a slate of Moroccan specialties at the ready: lamb tagines, tanjia (slow-cooked stew) prepared in communal ovens, and harira, a soup of tomato, lentils, and spices that’s often served at sunset. 

Travelers who check into one of the city’s riads or palace hotels (many of them are former residences of merchants) don’t need to venture far to try a Moroccan cooking class. Chefs at the 53-room Royal Mansour Marrakech, for example, teach guests how to make traditional chicken tagine, lamb mrouzia (a sweet and salty tagine), and fekkas (almond biscotti) in the hotel’s cooking school.

Fez: The Family-Style Soul of Morocco 

In northeastern Morocco – a one-hour flight northeast from Marrakech – Fez is the country’s gastronomic cradle. Its eighth-century UNESCO-listed medina – one of the oldest in the world – retains culinary techniques that have largely stayed the same for the last 1,000 years. Spice merchants still blend their family recipes for ras el hanout by hand (instead of using machines), and bakers pull loaves of traditional khobz (round Moroccan flatbread) from communal market ovens.

In between stops at the city’s textile and leather souks, travelers can try Fassi delicacies such as msemen (square-shaped flatbread) and b’stilla (a flaky sweet-and-savory pie layered with poultry, almonds, and powdered sugar) at restaurants such as Gayza, a French-Moroccan outlet inside the 30-room Riad Fès. There, chef Lalla Abida puts her twists on b’stilla, with a variation using seafood and vermicelli. 

For an authentic Fassi experience, travelers can ask their Virtuoso advisor to arrange dinner with a local family. (Moroccans are known for their warm and welcoming nature and often open their homes to visitors.) Before sitting down on a floor cushion for a multicourse meal, the evening begins with an atay, a traditional mint tea ceremony and a symbol of hospitality and friendship.

Casablanca: The International Menu  

Flavors from all over the world converge in Casablanca, Morocco’s largest city and one of North Africa’s biggest ports. During a period of French colonial rule in the early 1900s, Casablanca became a hub for European traders, which helped introduce French pastries, wine, and cooking techniques (as well as spices from sub-Saharan Africa, Europe, and Asia) to the city. That global influence remains today, as travelers roaming around Casablanca will come across French cafés, sushi bars, Mediterranean street vendors, and French-Moroccan fusion restaurants, such as La Brasserie at the 149-room Royal Mansour Casablanca. Chef Éric Frechon’s most beloved dishes include steak au poivre seasoned with Moroccan spices, chicken shawarma, almond croissants made with orange blossom water, and a b’stilla prepared with locally sourced Atlantic Ocean shellfish.

During guided culinary tours of Casablanca led by Virtuoso tour operator Shore Excursions Group, travelers visit souks and the 108-year-old Central Market, a neo-Moorish-style hub where rows of vendors display and sell Atlantic fish, aromatic herbs, olives, spices, and artisan-made handicrafts. Virtuoso advisors can also connect travelers with local chefs for a private, traditional or seafood-focused cooking lesson, where they’ll learn to prepare Casablanca-style chermoula (a vibrant sauce made with cilantro, garlic, cumin, coriander, and lemon), taktouka (roasted bell pepper salad), and slowly simmered stews.

Essaouira: The Laid-Back Catch  

A four-hour drive from Casablanca, Essaouira’s windswept eighteenth-century ramparts, blue-and-white medina, and bustling fishing port harbor a regional cuisine defined by freshness and simplicity. At restaurants across the seaside city, seafood shines, from Essaouira’s most iconic dish – chermoula-marinated grilled sardines – to seafood tagines, fried calamari, and fresh fish.

Travelers can pair visits to Essaouira’s medina with strolls around its lively harborfront, where fisherfolk unload crates of sardines and red snapper, and locals sell grilled seafood at rustic food stalls. Virtuoso advisors pair cooking classes with sunset horseback rides on Essaouira Beach and wine tastings at Val d’Argan, a 120-acre vineyard that specializes in Rhône grape varieties.

Tangier: The Mediterranean Delight

Tangier’s cuisine reflects centuries of trade with the city’s Spanish neighbors just across the Strait of Gibraltar. In this northern Moroccan port city, bright and citrusy Mediterranean flavors meet Moroccan traditions, resulting in bold dishes such as briouats (triangle-shaped flaky pastries filled with spiced seafood), fish tagines made with tomatoes and peppers, and bocadillos (Spanish sandwiches made with baguette-like bread, veggies, and cheese) layered with grilled meats and harissa. 

From the 133-room Fairmont Tazi Palace Tangier, guests drive ten minutes east into Tangier’s city center for private food tours that snake from whitewashed hillside cafés to bakeries with display cases full of honey-drenched pastries, buzzing souk-lined alleyways, and elegant seafood restaurants overlooking the water. On the blue-and-white terraces at Le Salon Bleu, mezze platters with hummus, zaalouk (smoked eggplant), fresh goat cheese, and tabbouleh pair perfectly with iced mint tea.

Another must-make Tangier reservation: a coveted table at El Morocco Club, a French-Moroccan restaurant inspired by the former NYC jazz club of the same name. After octopus salad, Moroccan-style foie gras, and seafood couscous, diners head downstairs to the popular speakeasy-style piano bar for classic cocktails and a global selection of wines.

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