Marrakech dining
Camel Burgers and Modern Moroccan in Marrakech: The New Wave
Alongside the timeless tagines and grills, a younger, more inventive Marrakech food scene has emerged — chefs reworking Moroccan flavours into burgers, small plates and contemporary dishes, camel meat included. It is playful, sometimes gimmicky, sometimes genuinely good, and it reflects a city that is both proudly traditional and increasingly cosmopolitan. Here is how to navigate the new wave.
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- 7 min
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- Marrakech dining
- Updated
- 19 July 2026
At a glance
- A new generation of chefs is reinventing Moroccan food in Marrakech.
- Camel burgers are a fun novelty — lean, rich and worth trying once.
- Modern spots plate traditional flavours in a contemporary, casual style.
- Most of the new-wave scene clusters in Gueliz and the trendier medina spots.
The modern Moroccan movement
For decades Moroccan restaurant food was either traditional home-style cooking or French and international fare. Now a middle path has grown: young Moroccan chefs, many trained abroad or influenced by global food culture, are taking the country's flavours — chermoula, ras el hanout, preserved lemon, harissa, argan — and applying them to burgers, wraps, bowls, small plates and modern platings. Some of this is casual street-food-with-a-twist; some is ambitious contemporary dining. Either way it signals a food scene finding a new, confident voice.
This matters for visitors because it offers a change of pace from the tagine circuit without leaving Moroccan flavour behind. A camel burger with harissa mayo or a deconstructed pastilla is a fun, modern counterpoint to a traditional feast.
What to try
The new-wave menu rewards curiosity. A few things stand out.
- Camel burger: lean, deep-flavoured camel meat in a bun, often with Moroccan-spiced toppings — the signature novelty.
- Reinvented street food: maakouda, kefta and merguez reworked into modern sandwiches, wraps and bowls.
- Contemporary tagine and plating: traditional flavours served in a modern, restrained style.
- Moroccan-spiced fusion: chermoula, harissa and ras el hanout applied to global dishes.
- Craft juices and smoothies: modern juice bars building on the fresh-juice tradition.
Where to find it and how to judge it
The modern scene concentrates in Gueliz, Marrakech's new town, with its cafés, design-conscious restaurants and younger crowd, and in the trendier corners of the medina where boutique spots have opened. Some of it is aimed squarely at tourists and can be more about the concept than the cooking, so the usual instincts apply: a place busy with locals and returning customers, and food that treats the Moroccan flavours seriously rather than as a gimmick, is the one to trust. The camel burger, for instance, is worth it when the meat is good and the seasoning real, less so when it is a tourist stunt.
Balance the new wave with the classics for the fullest picture of how Marrakech eats today. To understand the traditional flavours these chefs are reworking, a cooking class gives you the foundation, and the Gueliz modern-restaurants guide covers the new town in more depth.
Frequently asked questions
Can you eat camel in Marrakech?
Yes. Camel meat is eaten in Morocco, traditionally sold at dedicated butchers, and a new wave of restaurants now serves camel burgers — lean, rich and deep-flavoured, often with Moroccan-spiced toppings. It is a fun novelty worth trying once, best where the meat is good quality and the seasoning genuine rather than a tourist stunt.
What is modern Moroccan cuisine?
It is the work of a younger generation of chefs taking Moroccan flavours — chermoula, ras el hanout, preserved lemon, harissa, argan — and applying them to burgers, wraps, bowls, small plates and contemporary platings. It ranges from casual reinvented street food to ambitious fine dining, offering a modern counterpoint to the traditional tagine circuit.
Where do I find modern Moroccan food in Marrakech?
Mostly in Gueliz, the new town, with its cafes, design-conscious restaurants and younger crowd, and in the trendier boutique corners of the medina. Look for places busy with locals and repeat customers that treat Moroccan flavours seriously, rather than tourist-facing spots where the concept outshines the cooking.
Is modern Moroccan food worth trying over traditional?
It is worth trying alongside, not instead of, the classics. The new wave offers a change of pace and shows a food scene finding a confident new voice, but the traditional tagines, grills and slow-cooked dishes remain the heart of Marrakech eating. Balancing both gives you the fullest picture of how the city eats today.