Restaurants in Morocco

Restaurants in Merrakesh

Dar Moha
Moroccan Cuisine
81, Rue dar el Bacha, Medina
Phone: 044/38-64-00
DH250 to DH450
Opened in 2000 and previously owned by Pierre Balmain, this stylish riad has been lovingly renovated and is now a restaurant that offers a fixed menu of nouvelle cuisine marocaine at tables placed beneath lush banana palms around a small sparkling pool. Owner-chef Moha and his Swiss wife, Alma, have gone out on a limb to create delicious adaptations of traditional dishes that include a tiny melt-in-the-mouth pastilla filled with a purée of vegetables, a lightly spiced monkfish tagine with a macédoine of fresh zucchini and tomatoes, and strawberries wrapped in wafer-thin pastry and rolled in ground almonds. Andalousian lutists serenade you, and a belly dancer swishes between tables later in the evening. Closed Mon. No lunch.

Le Yacout
Moroccan Cuisine
79, Sidi Ahmed Soussi
Phone: 044/38-29-29 or 044/38-29-00
Over 450DH
The palatial Le Yacout is set in a house redesigned as a Thousand and One Nights restaurant by Marrakesh aficionado Bill Willis. Aperitifs are proffered on the rooftop to the haunting chants of a Gnaouan musician. Dinner is served in several different settings: beside the turquoise pool, in a vaulted upstairs room, in an intimate glassed-in salon, or in the lush, cushion-filled main salon. The traditional Moroccan feast includes djez makalli (chicken with olives and preserved lemons) and yet more musical accompaniment. Courteous and efficient waiters flurry inconspicuously under the paternal eye of Sidi Abdellah (Sidi Mohammed's brother). The fixed price includes unlimited drinks. Reservations essential. AE, MC, V. Closed Mon. No lunch.

Le Pavillon
French Cuisine
47, Derb Zaouia
Phone: 044/38-70-40
DH100 to DH250
French owner Philippe has given this beautiful riad a chic, modern look. He serves excellent French cuisine in two settings: in the small courtyard -- under fig trees beside a pond lighted with floating candles -- and in cozy salon alcoves. The mouthwatering bouillabaisse and soufflé au citron (lemon soufflé) are faultless. MC, V. Closed Tues. No lunch.

Kim Son
Pan-Asian Cuisine
Rue Ibn Toumert
Phone: 044/43-01-59
Under 100DH
One of the few Asian eateries in town, Kimson has a creative menu of Vietnamese- and Chinese-style cuisine, including very good nems (spring rolls) and glazed duck dishes. After several Moroccan meals, it can be a nice change to sit in this garden and pick on bamboo shoots with chopsticks. MC, V. Closed Sun.

La Trattoria
Italian Cuisine
179, Rue Mohammed El Béqal
Phone: 044/43-26-41
DH100 to DH250
This restaurant has long held a place among Marrakesh's top restaurants, due partly to the pizzazz of its late owner, Juan Carlo. His chef, Mohammed, has now taken over, and with recent renovations overseen by Bill Willis in his unique neo-Moorish style, this ornate restaurant is once again flourishing. You can sit beside the pool and enjoy a good entrecôte steak (a steak cut from between the ribs) or one of the many seafood pastas. DC, MC, V. Closed Mon. No lunch.

Hours of operation | UK: M-F 8am - midnight | US: M-F 8am-7pm, Sat 9am-1pm EST
US: | UK: 0870 850 1144
US: P.O. Box 1461 Newport, RI 02840