Restaurants in Rabat
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Restaurant el-Bahia
Built into the outside of the medina walls and a good spot for people-watching, this laid-back restaurant has the locals lapping up hearty Moroccan fare. Sit on the pavement terrace, in the shaded courtyard or upstairs in the traditional salon.
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Restaurant Dinarjat
Stylish and the most elegant of medina restaurants, Dinarjat is a favourite with well-heeled locals and visitors alike. It’s set in a superb 17th-century Andalusian-style house at the heart of the medina, and has been carefully restored and decorated in a contemporary style but in keeping with tradition. The restaurant is an ode to the Arab-Andalusian art of living with its sumptuous architecture, refined traditional food and peaceful oud (lute) music. The tajines, couscous and salads are prepared with the freshest ingredients, using little fat, and are surprisingly light. Book in advance.
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Le Grand Comptoir
Sleek, stylish and oozing the charms of an old-world Parisienne brasserie, this suave restaurant and lounge bar woos customers with its chic surroundings and classic French menu. Candelabras, giant palms and contemporary art adorn the grand salon while a pianist tinkles in the background. Go for the succulent steaks or be brave and try the andouillette (tripe sausage) or veal kidneys. A good place to have breakfast or coffee too, and there is wi-fi.
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Grotto Tavern
Grotto Tavern, owned by a friendly French-Maltese couple, offers wining and dining on the main square. The menu waves the tricolore with dishes such as frogs’ legs or duck à l’orange, plus fondues and raclettes perfect for sharing. Leave room for crêpes, chocolate fondue or tarte aux pommes (apple tart).
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Le Petit Beur – Dar Tajine
This modest little place is renowned for its excellent Moroccan food, from succulent tajines and heavenly couscous to one of the best pastillas in town. It’s a little sombre at lunchtime but livens up at night when the waiters double as musicians and play oud music to accompany your meal. Book ahead or get there early as it fills up quickly.
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La Koutoubia
Old-fashioned Moroccan restaurant with plenty of traditional zallij and colourful painted panels. All the classic Moroccan dishes are on the menu here, including tajines and couscous, but labour-intensive specialities like pastilla ay pigeon or mechoui (roast lamb) need to be ordered in advance. Good wine list.
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Tajine wa Tanja
Down-to-earth Moroccan dishes are the speciality at this small, friendly restaurant near the train station. Choose from a range of wood-fired grills or tajines prepared to traditional recipes, or make a special outing for the magnificent Friday couscous. It’s a fairly quiet spot, and not so intimidating for women travelling alone.
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Les Casseroles en Folie
This elegant French restaurant is popular at lunchtime with bureaucrats from the nearby ministries, but more relaxed in the evening. The food is very French with specialities like Salade des Casseroles (a salad with wild mushrooms and duck breast), and steaks with various sauces. Keep some space for the delicious dessert trolley.
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La Veranda
Run by the same owner as Le Grand Comptoir, this loft-style restaurant, in a modernist villa with a pleasant garden under majestic palm trees, is already proving the place to be at lunchtime. It serves good contemporary French-Mediterranean bistro food from a changing menu written on a blackboard. The staff is young and trendy.
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L’Entrecôte
The menu and attitude at this upmarket old-style restaurant in Agdal are very French but the dark woods and rough plaster are more reminiscent of Bavaria than Bordeaux. Steak, fish and game specialities dominate the classic French menu, and to further confuse the ambience there’s jazz or traditional Spanish music at night.
reviewed
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Restaurant de la Libération
Cheap, cheerful and marginally more classy than the string of other eateries along this road (it’s got plastic menus and tablecloths), this basic restaurant does a steady line in traditional favourites. Friday is couscous day when giant platters of the stuff are delivered to the eager masses.
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Le Fuji
Simple, pared-back design and authentic Japanese dishes make this tranquil place a welcome break from the fanfare and traditional menus of other Rabat restaurants. Go for delicious sushi, sashimi or tempura or fill up on one of the colourful bento boxes. A good option for vegetarians.
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La Mamma
It looks pretty dark from the outside, but this old favourite serves some of the best pizza and pasta in town. The beamed ceilings and candlelit tables add a touch of 1970s romantic atmosphere, and the wood-fired pizzas and grilled meats will leave you planning a return visit.
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Le Ziryab
This chic Moroccan restaurant is in a magnificent building just off Rue des Consuls. The blend of old-world character and stylish contemporary design is reflected in the excellent menu of interesting variations on tajine, couscous, pastilla, and grilled meat and fish.
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Ty Potes
A pleasant and welcoming lunch spot and tea house, serving sweet and savoury crepes, healthy salads and sandwiches. It’s popular with well-heeled locals. The atmosphere is more European, with a little garden at the back, and the Sunday brunch is particularly well attended.
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Borj Eddar
This restaurant overlooking the sea has a menu of excellent fresh fish and seafood dishes. The next door Restaurant de la Plage has a similar menu and the same views. There’s little to choose between them: both have glass-fronted terraces overlooking the ocean.
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Paul
This French bakery and patisserie is the place to hang out in Rabat, serving the best croissants in town for breakfast, good sandwiches, salads and a light menu throughout the day. Sit in the elegant interior or on the pleasant, if noisy, streetside terrace.
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Pâtisserie Lina
Mountainous cakes in elaborate guises adorn the window displays at this traditional French patisserie. Come for breakfast and you may find yourself returning for an afternoon sugar fix just so you can try some more of the tantalising gateaux on display.
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Cafe Weimar
This hip café in the Goethe Institut is where the young and beautiful hang out for cake and coffee or lunch. It also does a simple Mediterranean menu and is a good spot for Sunday brunch. Book ahead, but there are no reservations on Friday and Saturday
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L’R du Gout
This large, new restaurant with a colourful interior – a blend of French bistort and Moroccan flair – is run by young French men. The menu serves traditional French brasserie food such as foie gras, veal kidneys, and steak with a pepper sauce.
reviewed
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Galapagos Café
Slick café-terrace with dark-wood panelling, contemporary furniture and floor-to-ceiling windows. It’s popular with young professionals for its ice cream, crêpes, panini and people-watching.
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Parruċċan Confectionery
You might like to peruse Parruċċan Confectionery on the main square and pick up samples of Maltese specialities like nougat, nut brittle and fig rolls.
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Café de la Jeunesse
Just down the road from the Libération and more a large hole-in-the-wall than a proper sit-down affair, this basic place is great for brochettes, sandwiches and tajines.
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Pâtisserie Majestic
An excellent and extremely popular patisserie, perfect for breakfast or an afternoon cake and coffee, and right in the centre of town.
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Restaurant de la Plage
Overlooking the wide, sandy beach below the kasbah, this place specialises in fresh grilled fish and seafood.
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