Casablanca is not a backpacker highlight, but if you’re here for a night or two it has the best and most varied restaurant scene in Morocco. French-era Art Deco bistros, Atlantic seafood, modern Moroccan fine dining, and authentic street food all coexist.
Central Market fish stalls
The Central Market (Marché Central) downtown has a row of small seafood restaurants around the fish stalls. Order by the kilo — grilled sea bream, sardines, prawns — then eat at communal tables. 80–180 MAD per person. A Casa institution.
Sqala Cafe Maure
Inside the old Portuguese fort on the coast: Moroccan and Mediterranean plates in an outdoor courtyard with fig trees. Touristy but genuinely beautiful. 150–300 MAD.
Rick’s Cafe
Yes, the movie reference. No, the movie wasn’t filmed here. But the restaurant is beautiful and the food is decent. It’s a splurge (300–500 MAD) more for the vibe than the plate.
Habous neighborhood
The “new medina” south of downtown has small family restaurants and pastry shops — Bennis Habous is legendary for gazelle horns and sellou. 50–100 MAD for a proper tagine lunch.
Street food near Boulevard Mohammed V
Sandwich shops selling kefta, mechoui, grilled chicken, and loubia (white bean stew). 20–40 MAD for a full sandwich with fries and a drink. Workers’ lunch.
Art Deco bistros
Casablanca’s downtown is full of 1930s bistros still functioning: Taverne du Dauphin (opened 1958), La Petite Roche (on the cliff). French-Moroccan cuisine, wine list, 200–400 MAD per person. Book ahead on weekends.
Modern Moroccan
Rick’s, Basmane, and a few places in Ain Diab push Moroccan cuisine in a modern direction — deconstructed pastilla, creative tagines. 250–500 MAD.
Where to go
- Budget: Boulevard Mohammed V sandwich shops, Habous neighborhood, the Old Medina near the port.
- Mid: Central Market fish stalls, small bistros around Place Mohammed V.
- Destination: La Sqala, Rick’s Cafe, Taverne du Dauphin.
Drinks
Casablanca is the most relaxed Moroccan city for drinking. Bars throughout downtown and Ain Diab; beer 40–80 MAD, cocktails 80–150 MAD.