Street Vendors, Marrakesh

I've only tried 3 restarants in Marrakesh. Since I tried this one I've never went to eat in other places. Just here. Employees are very gentle and the owner Aicha, well she's just amazing. She's the boss.

Favorite Dish: You can choose a large variety of food. Im vegetarian and lots of vegetarian food.
vegetarian couscous
vegetarian harera
etc

ok, so you'll find so many restaurants on the main square that it will be hard to choose one. Eating on the main square can actually bring you stomach problems and more serious stuff. I never got a thing!!! All my friends usually go to fancy restaurants and they all get sick and I don't. I'm vegetarian and food quality concerns me much.
I already went to Marrakesh many times and I always go to the some place where also the majority of maroccos also go cos she's very well known for having good food. Its the Main Square Restaurant Number 1 from Aicha. She's very nice, also some worker like Moname, Hassan, Rachid etc are great! try this one.

Favorite Dish: Try the vegetarian couscous, tomato salad, potato cookies, fried eggplant....
Meat has not a very good reputation in Morocco and I'm not talking as a vegetarian now! believe me... you can get really sick indeed eating meat.
Water from the tap in marrakesh never did any harm also...

While I was walking around the souk with my guide, (who I'd hired for the morning), he stopped at this stall and indicated to the owner, a quantity of the hot roasted lamb, which was carved and wrapped in paper, with a twist of paper holding a mix of cumin and salt. My guide explained we'd share it soon.

He then pointed to another piece of meat, and offered it to me. I asked what it was (I had a pretty good idea! ;-) ) but he just said "it's very good, very special" I was instructed to dip the portion into the cumin/salt mix.

I guessed I was being offered a sheeps testicle!! which my guide confirmed later that it was!

Well, surprisingly it was very tender and tasty!

We then walked to a carpet shop (I had no intention of buying a carpet) where we ate the delicious lamb accompanied by glasses of mint tea (A variation on lamb and mint sauce!) while the various carpets were unfurled in front of us.

After we'd eaten the lamb, we left- without buying a carpet!!

It was worth hiring a guide for these types of experience, I'm sure that I wouldn't have thought of buying a hunk of roast lamb and taking it to eat in a carpet shop, and I probably wouldn't have tried a sheeps testicle.

Favorite Dish: Roast lamb, hot, tender and delicious!
The cumin/salt mix was a very tasty accompaniment!

I'm now enjoying this at home as an alternative to mint sauce / rosemary and garlic etc! (brings back memories of my holiday!)

Sheeps testicle!! (an unexpected 'treat')- and a great conversation opener/stopper!!!

Was pleased to read/ view on TV, Anthony Bourdains experience of eating this delicacy!

I'm not sure of the cost, my guide paid.

As I'd wandered around the foodstalls of Djemma el Fnaa, I'd spotted stalls with displays of sheeps heads, complete with teeth!
After my experience of eating a sheeps testicle! (see Lamb take away tip) I was ready to be adventurous, but I would draw the line at eating sheeps eyes if they were ever offered to me!!

After much walking around these stalls, trying to work out how the dishes were served- (the menus were in Arabic) I'd seen saucers of meat pieces, served with a gravy topping, and vats of stews, I felt confident enough to join the locals at one stall. (Following the oft repeated travellers addage- eat where the locals eat for good food!)

Well it was a dining experience!

I pointed to a tagine, which appeared to be meat and preserved lemons. I was handed a large piece of bread and a filled bowl . It was very tasty, if a bit greasy!
As soon as I'd finished, my bowl was taken from me and refilled!

One of the stallholders indicated a piece of meat to my server, which he added to my dish. I wasn't sure if I'd been given a 'special' bit, On finding a piece with lots of tubes, I tried to ask which part of the animal this was.My anatomy lessons failed me!.I'm a Nurse, not a Vet!

I think the man thought I wasn't happy with this piece, and flicked it into a bin!

I enjoyed this dining experience, it was a bit different! I was left to enjoy the meal by myself in the company of local couples, families and single men.

Cheap too! I paid 16dh (£1) for 2 large portions of a hot tagine and bread!

Favorite Dish: The lamb tagine was the only dish I tried. It was hot and tasty, but a bit greasy.

I was partly expecting an upset stomach afterwards, but I was fine. I think all the mint tea I was consuming counteracted any digestive problems!

Although I'd put this in my custom guide, pre departure, on my first night in Djemma el Fnaa, I'd forgotten about it. I was soon pursuaded to take a seat at one of the food stalls, where I was made to feel quite welcome.

I wasn't sure what to order, so just pointed to dishes my fellow diners were eating. I had a pleasant (and cheap) meal of bread, 2 spicy sauce dips, lentil soup, and lamb brochettes with a small salad, all for about 20dh.

It wasn't until I was leaving, after my meal, and one of the boys pointed to the sign, so I'd remember where to come back to, that I realised I'd found Aichas!

Favorite Dish: I ate here a few times, and enjoyed all the dishes.

Besides the meal above I also tried vegetable tajine, vegetable cous cous, potato cakes, and small spicy sausages on various visits.

This is probably a good stall to head for on your first night, if it's your first time eating in Djemma el Fnaa, as the staff are used to tourists - ignore their calls of "lovely jubbly/ asda price etc" The food was good, and there were Moroccan families eating here too.
You can then venture to another stall the next night, or return here

A great way to get your vitamin C ! These orange juice stalls line the edge of Djemma el Fnaa.

The oranges, or a mix of orange and lemon or grapefruit are served neat, or mixed with water, with or without added sugar.

I'm afraid I didn't get to try an orange juice from these stalls, although I enjoyed a few glasses in cafes and at my hotel for breakfast.
The stalls were quite eye-catching though!

I kept meaning to buy from one of these carts, but at night it was too cold for me, and I was usually full of mint tea and spicy hunja!

Around Djemma El Fnaa, near the orange juice carts, you'll spot some stalls with copper cauldrens. These contain a local beverage known as hunja.

My curiosity got the better of me one night, and I joined the locals standing around the stalls, drinking glasses of this hot spicy beverage .

At the side of the stall are jars of the spices that make up the drink. Unfortunately I couldn't identify most of them, and no one could tell me what the recipe was (language barrier, not a trade secret!)

Accompanying the hunja, you are given a saucer with scoops of a spicy chocolate cake called tkaout - Mmmmmmm- Drink and cake for about 5dh!! Bargain!

If you're in Marrakesh in Winter, this is a must do, to warm you through!

Favorite Dish: Hunja and cake!!..thats all they sell!

The hunja reminded me a bit of Masala tea that I'd drunk in Kerala, but even hotter!

If anyone knows the recipe, I'd be very grateful to be let in on this secret-- Would be great for a bonfire night party, or to carry in a vaccuum flask on a winter walk!

2 more images

Djema el Fnaa offers something different at every hour.. during the day it's delicious freshly-squeezed orange-juices, in the evening it's "hot" food - mainly brochettes and snails - sweets, too but we did not taste any.

I must say that I found the food really delicious - if maybe not very hygienic. Still, I have never heard of anyone who has been sick after eating there.

Favorite Dish: One evening we had brochettes, which I found really good - particularly the "liver" brochettes. We ate at stand number 26 (someone had recommended it to us). We paid less than 100 dirhams for two. Another evening we had some quite tasty snails at stand number 5 which were even cheaper.