Best Kasbah Restaurants in Tangier — Dining Above the Strait

The Kasbah sits at the highest point of the Tangier medina, a walled citadel of narrow white lanes, the Sultan's old palace (Dar el-Makhzen) and small squares that open suddenly onto views of the sea. In recent decades many of its grand old houses have been restored as guesthouses and restaurants, some with rooftop terraces that look out over the Strait of Gibraltar to the mountains of southern Spain, just 14 kilometres across the water. Dining here, with the lights of two continents visible at night, is the most atmospheric meal in the city.

The cooking in the Kasbah's better restaurants blends refined Moroccan classics — tagine, pastilla, seafood — with the international and Spanish-inflected touches that Tangier's cosmopolitan history brought. Some are formal courtyard tables in restored riads; others are intimate rooftop spots serving a set menu by candlelight. Because the Kasbah is compact and its lanes are quiet after dark, an evening here feels a world away from the busy medina below.

Reserve ahead, as the best Kasbah tables are small, and ask for a terrace or window seat for the Strait view — especially at sunset, when the light falls across the water toward Spain. Wear comfortable shoes for the steep medina climb up, and consider walking down afterwards through the lit lanes to the Petit Socco for a mint tea. It is Tangier at its most timeless and romantic.