How-to guide
How to Eat Your Way Through Casablanca
Casablanca is Morocco's biggest, most cosmopolitan city, and its food scene reflects that — world-class Atlantic seafood, a buzzing Central Market, French-influenced patisseries, and a modern restaurant culture you won't find in the medinas. It's less about ancient tradition than about eating like a contemporary Casablancais. This guide covers how to eat your way through the city.
About 2 days of eating
Step by step
- 1
Eat seafood at the Central Market
Start at the Marché Central on Boulevard Mohammed V, where you buy fresh fish and shellfish from the stalls and have the in-market restaurants cook it on the spot. It's the freshest, best-value seafood lunch in the city and a Casablanca institution.
- 2
Try the coastal fish specialities
Casablanca does grilled and fried Atlantic fish superbly — sea bream, sole, sardines, prawns and calamari. Along the Corniche and in the port-side eateries you'll find both simple grills and smarter seafood restaurants.
- 3
Graze the street food
For quick eats, look for snail soup stalls, grilled sardines, bocadillo-style sandwiches stuffed with salad and fried fish or kefta, and Moroccan-French bakery snacks. The downtown and Habous quarter are good grazing grounds.
- 4
Explore the modern dining scene
Unlike the traditional cities, Casablanca has a genuine contemporary restaurant culture — modern Moroccan, international, and stylish cafes. It's the place to eat updated versions of Moroccan classics and cuisines from around the world.
- 5
Buy sweets in the Habous quarter
The Quartier Habous (New Medina) is famous for its traditional pastry shops selling excellent Moroccan sweets — a good place to pick up gazelle horns, briouats and other almond pastries to take away.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Expecting a medina-style old town — Casablanca's appeal is modern and coastal, not ancient.
- Skipping the Central Market's buy-and-cook seafood, the city's signature experience.
- Not agreeing seafood prices by weight before buying at the market.
- Overlooking the Habous quarter for traditional pastries.
Tips from the kitchen
- Buy fish at the Marché Central and have the market stalls grill it for you.
- The Corniche is the place for a seafood dinner with a sea view.
- Casablanca is Morocco's best city for modern and international dining.
- The Habous quarter's pastry shops are excellent for sweets to take home.
Questions
What food is Casablanca known for?
Above all fresh Atlantic seafood — grilled and fried fish, prawns and shellfish — centred on the Central Market where you buy and have it cooked on the spot. It also has Morocco's most modern, cosmopolitan restaurant scene.
Where should I eat seafood in Casablanca?
The Marché Central on Boulevard Mohammed V is the classic spot, letting you pick fresh fish and have the in-market restaurants cook it. The Corniche and port area also have both casual grills and smarter seafood restaurants.
Is Casablanca good for food?
Yes, though differently from the traditional cities. Its strengths are superb Atlantic seafood, a lively market, French-influenced bakeries, and a genuine modern restaurant culture rather than ancient medina cooking.
Learn it hands-on in Marrakech
Reading is one thing; doing it beside a local host is another. Book a Marrakech cooking class, or explore the medina on a guided food tour.