Budget Moroccan
Cheap Eats in Ouarzazate — Budget Food on the Desert Road
Ouarzazate is a working desert-gateway town, and it feeds travellers and locals cheaply: roadside tagine canteens, sandwich counters, soup stalls and the local market. Simple, hearty and affordable, it is honest fuel for the journey south.
- City
- Ouarzazate
- Cuisine
- Budget Moroccan
- Typical price
- 10-50 MAD
The cheapest reliable meals in Ouarzazate are the roadside tagines and the standard Moroccan staples. Small canteens along the main road and near the market serve slow-cooked tagines, lentils, and plates of the day with bread and salad for around 30-50 MAD — hearty, filling and pitched at local workers and passing travellers rather than tourists. A tagine cooked since morning is the best-value hot meal in town.
Soups keep costs lower still: harira and bissara with bread cost around 10-15 MAD at stalls, warming in the cool desert mornings and evenings. Sandwich counters stuff baguettes with kefta, merguez or maakouda, chips and salad for 15-40 MAD. The local market and small grocers sell dates from the nearby Draa Valley, almonds, bread, olives and cheese cheaply — perfect for a picnic on a desert drive, and the dates in particular are superb and inexpensive here at the source.
Because Ouarzazate is a stopover on the way to the dunes, the Draa Valley and Aït Benhaddou, its roadside eateries cater to travellers on a budget as well as locals, keeping prices reasonable. Away from the guesthouse and kasbah-hotel restaurants (which cost more for their setting), the simple canteens offer the same food far cheaper.
To eat cheaply, stick to the roadside tagine canteens, soup stalls and sandwich counters, and stock up on the excellent local dates and almonds for the road. Confirm prices before ordering, and Ouarzazate will fuel your desert journey well for very little.
How to eat well
- 1
Roadside tagine canteens serve a hearty slow-cooked meal with bread for 30-50 MAD.
- 2
Stock up on superb, cheap Draa Valley dates and almonds from the market for the road.
- 3
Harira and bissara soups with bread cost around 10-15 MAD — warming in the cool desert air.
- 4
Simple canteens are far cheaper than the kasbah-hotel restaurants for the same food.
- 5
Sandwich counters give a full meal for 15-40 MAD.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I eat cheaply in Ouarzazate?
At the roadside tagine canteens and sandwich counters along the main road and near the market, and at soup stalls, where hearty local meals cost 10-50 MAD, far less than the kasbah-hotel restaurants.
What cheap local produce should I buy in Ouarzazate?
Dates from the nearby Draa Valley and almonds — both superb and inexpensive at the source, and ideal for a picnic on a desert drive.
Is food expensive in Ouarzazate?
Not at the local canteens and stalls, where it is cheap and hearty. The guesthouse and kasbah-hotel restaurants cost more for their atmosphere, but simple roadside eateries serve the same food for much less.