Fez: Restaurant and carpet shop recommendations requested

Fes has changed a lot ( for the better) since I first made an appearance there back in 1982, most of the more aggressive hustlers and touts in both the Medinas Fes el Bali and Fes el Jdid have been expunged by the plainclothes tourist police whose office is built into the famous blue gate Bab Boujloud, signified by the red Moroccan flag above the front door.....

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4752139/users/Bennytheball/

My regular restaurant is Cafe / Restaurant Boua Nania, close to the blue gate, there are dining rooms on several floors, the best being the roof terrace with panoramic views......

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4610742/users/Bennytheball/

I particularly like this eatery because the food is good, and the menu is prominently displayed at the front door, either choose fixed menu or `a la carte, it's not expensive and above all there is no surreptitious overcharging on the final bill, in other words the management are honest, something of a rarity nowadays in Morocco!

There are as many carpet shops in the Medinas as you encountered back in the day, and price haggling is as ruthless and determined as ever, except there is none of the aggression of yesteryear, the tourist police have got this one sorted out and in my recent experience it seems that salesmen have been to some sort of mandatory 'charm school' and are visibly calm and polite with none of the old evil body-door-blocking techniques to intimidate you into a sale. Even at the newly-refurbished Chouara tanneries the touts are now completely tame.....

Hop over to the Tripadvisor Morocco forum where I also write and advise, click on my username and scroll down the 53 reviews list where you will find more information on Fes.

We did buy a fairly inexpensive rug there a year ago. I have no idea which shop it was--on the main street, on the left; they had it hanging up and we liked it and didn't see that particular one elsewhere (although we did see a similar one later in Meknes). We wound up paying about half of the first price, and I am sure we got taken to some extent or other, as we have little patience for bargaining hard. We just decided we liked it and decided how much we would pay and then went and had lunch and came back and bought it. I don't have any idea what it is "worth." I would want to be much better informed if I wanted to buy an expensive or old rug.

You should look anyway at the View from Fez weblog as it's a great source of information on Fez, but here's some specifics on carpets...

http://riadzany.blogspot.co.uk/p/beginners-guide-to-moroccan-carpets.html
http://riadzany.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/buying-moroccan-carpets-in-fez.html
http://riadzany.blogspot.co.uk/2011/10/carpet-auction-in-moroccos-middle-atlas.html

Even if you pay over the odds for your carpet ( and it's a certainty you will) if you got the one you really wanted and look after it, especially when washing, it will be a pleasant memory of your holiday and will last many years in your home if you don't lay it on the floor, hanging it on a wall is a better location to avoid abrasive tramping feet.

When I bought my beautiful big red carpet in Essaouira a long time ago the merchant advised me not to wash it with modern chemical-based washing powders, instead only sparingly using mild soap flakes, a washing machine can be used but only on a low heat short cycle. I have washed my carpet a few times this way and it has remained dye-fast. Even if it fades a bit as long as the fading is uniform throughout the weave it will still be a colourful furnishing in your home.

Take care if drying the carpet outside in sunny weather, many dyes are not stable when exposed to ultraviolet rays, find a warm but shady location instead.

I just remembered, there is a carpet shop at the Chouara tannery, it's located directly across the narrow street's entrance to the tannery, the proprietor has a large stock of carpets, smaller rugs and leatherwares, he also makes carpets as you can see in this picture he has the old-fashioned loom on the premises.....

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4609674/users/Bennytheball/

If you appear here, it's inevitable you will be invited to explore the refurbished tannery, when I went there last year I was escorted by a young man (Omar) who was the unofficial English-speaking guide, I gave him 20 dirhams which was gratefully accepted, he was knowledgeable, helpful and polite without being intrusive and showed me the best photographic positions....

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4609673/users/Bennytheball/

Probably the next best place to find that elusive carpet would be the main Medina street, Rue Talaa Kebira, souvenir and leatherware shops here are everywhere, some with carpets dangling from the front doors, you can't immediately spot any in this picture, but you may be assured they will be lurking somewhere in the back of a shop, if not on display, so you really need to go into the shop instead of just giving it a passing glance......

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4749349/users/Bennytheball/

Another possible place to find your carpet might be the Fondouk Tazi, a medieval traveller's inn now reinvented as an emporium for the sale of local handcrafts, even if you can't see any carpets on display, ask the proprietor if he has any, sometimes the rugs and carpets are folded up and laid down flat so won't always immediately catch the eye especially with all the ongoing distractions of the busy street outside.

The Fondouk Tazi is easy to find, starting your Medina tour from Bab Boujloud, the blue gate, walk along the main thoroughfare Rue Talaa Kebira, passing Cafe Clock on your left and Medersa Bouanania on your right, the emporium is a little further along on your right hand side......

http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4610406/users/Bennytheball/
http://www.travellerspoint.com/photos/stream/photoID/4791528/users/Bennytheball/

If going shopping in Fes el Bali Medina I always aim to start out early in the morning around 10 am before the narrow confusing streets become too busy, the worst time is just after lunchtime when the official tour groups assemble at Bab Boujloud and invade the Medina with their guides in pole position, expect major congestion around Medersa Bouanania and the Kairaouine Mosque!

Thanks Kaptainsensible. I have a burnt orange tile floor here in Rome and a classic red and yellow carpet would look great on it. I also have a wall I could put it on. Great tips. I appreciate it.

John

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