International
Best International Dining in Casablanca — Morocco's Cosmopolitan Table
As Morocco's economic capital and biggest city, Casablanca has the country's most cosmopolitan restaurant scene, from French bistros and Italian trattorias to Japanese, Lebanese and pan-African tables. This is where Morocco eats the world.
- City
- Casablanca
- Cuisine
- International
- Typical price
- 120-600 MAD
Casablanca's international dining reflects its history as a cosmopolitan port and business hub. The French protectorate legacy runs deep in its brasseries and bistros, where steak-frites, fresh oysters and pastries are served with Art Deco polish downtown. Beyond that, the city's affluent districts — Gauthier, Maârif and the Corniche — carry Italian, Spanish, Lebanese, Japanese and increasingly modern fusion restaurants that would not look out of place in any major world city.
The most famous international address is, of course, the Rick's Café homage to the 1942 film — a restored courtyard mansion trading on the movie's romance, serving international and Moroccan dishes with a piano in the corner. But the real strength of Casablanca is its everyday cosmopolitanism: sushi counters, Italian pizzerias run by long-settled families, Lebanese mezze houses and French-trained chefs cooking market-driven menus. Business lunches and evening tables here are how Morocco's professional class dines out.
To eat well, head for Gauthier, Maârif and the Corniche for the concentration of quality international restaurants, and reserve at the busier tables on weekend evenings. Prices sit above the medina-canteen world but below European capitals, and the quality at the top end is genuinely high. If you have been on the road eating tagine for a week, Casablanca is the place to change register — then return to Moroccan cooking refreshed.
How to eat well
- 1
Focus on the Gauthier, Maârif and Corniche districts for the best international restaurants.
- 2
The French-protectorate brasseries downtown do excellent steak-frites, oysters and pastries.
- 3
Rick's Café is a fun film-themed splurge, but the city's everyday cosmopolitan tables are the real draw.
- 4
Reserve ahead for popular tables on Friday and Saturday evenings.
- 5
Use Casablanca to change register from tagine — sushi, Italian and Lebanese are all strong here.
Frequently asked questions
Does Casablanca have good international food?
Yes — as Morocco's largest, most cosmopolitan city it has the country's widest range of international dining: French brasseries, Italian, Spanish, Lebanese, Japanese and modern fusion, concentrated in districts like Gauthier, Maârif and the Corniche.
Where is the best non-Moroccan food in Casablanca?
The Gauthier and Maârif neighbourhoods and the Ain Diab Corniche hold most of the city's quality international restaurants, from bistros to sushi counters. Downtown's protectorate-era brasseries are strong for French classics.
What is Rick's Café in Casablanca?
A restored courtyard restaurant and piano bar themed on the 1942 film Casablanca, serving international and Moroccan dishes in an atmospheric setting. It is a popular tourist splurge rather than the city's most authentic table.