Vegetarian
Best Vegetarian Food in Fes — Beyond the Meat Tagine
Fassi cuisine is meat-rich, but a vegetarian eats very well in Fes once you know the dishes to ask for. Vegetable tagines, bean soups, salads and griddle breads make up a satisfying, genuinely local plant-based table.
- City
- Fes
- Cuisine
- Vegetarian
- Typical price
- 30-150 MAD
The everyday vegetarian anchors are bissara (a thick fava-bean or split-pea soup with cumin and olive oil), harira (the tomato, lentil and chickpea soup — ask for the meat-free version, common in Ramadan), and the seven-vegetable couscous, which in its purest form is a mound of steamed semolina crowned with carrots, turnips, pumpkin, courgette, cabbage and chickpeas. Vegetable tagines built on a saffron-onion base with potato, carrot, courgette, peas and green olives are on almost every menu and are reliably good.
Fes also excels at the cold and cooked salads that open a meal: zaalouk (smoky mashed aubergine with tomato and garlic), taktouka (roasted pepper and tomato), bakoula (cooked mallow greens with olives and preserved lemon), and simple carrot, beetroot and orange salads. Add griddle breads, olives, dates, fresh cheese and the medina's fruit and nut stalls, and you have plenty to eat without touching meat. Do note that couscous and some soups may be made with meat stock, so it is worth asking.
Practical advice: say "bghit makla bla lham" (I want food without meat) or simply "vegetarian" and specify no meat broth if it matters to you. Riads are often happy to prepare a vegetable couscous or tagine to order with notice. Between the soups, vegetable tagines, salad spreads and breads, Fes is one of the easier Moroccan cities in which to eat plant-based well.
How to eat well
- 1
Ask for vegetable tagine on a saffron-onion base — potato, carrot, courgette, peas and olives.
- 2
Order seven-vegetable couscous, but check it is made without meat stock if that matters to you.
- 3
Load up on cooked salads: zaalouk (aubergine), taktouka (pepper-tomato) and bakoula (mallow greens).
- 4
Bissara (fava-bean soup) is naturally vegetarian, filling and cheap — a great medina lunch.
- 5
Give riads notice and they will happily prepare a vegetable couscous or tagine to order.
Frequently asked questions
Is Fes good for vegetarians?
Yes — despite the meat-rich reputation, Fes offers vegetable tagines, seven-vegetable couscous, bissara and harira soups, and a wide range of cooked and raw salads, making it one of the easier Moroccan cities for plant-based eating.
What vegetarian dishes should I order in Fes?
Vegetable tagine, seven-vegetable couscous, bissara (fava-bean soup), and salads like zaalouk, taktouka and bakoula, plus griddle breads, olives and fresh fruit. Confirm soups and couscous are made without meat stock.
How do I ask for vegetarian food in Fes?
Say "bghit makla bla lham" (food without meat) or simply "vegetarian," and specify no meat broth if needed. Riads will usually prepare a vegetable couscous or tagine to order with a little notice.