Food & Drink
Morocco’s traditional haute cuisine dishes are very
good and excellent value for money. They are always quite elaborate,
based on a diet of meat and sweet pastries. The restaurants
in hotels usually serve French cuisine. Restaurants offer
a great choice of food which include typical Moroccan
dishes, Italian, French or Spanish meals. The 3-course fixed menus
are cheap. Many of the souks have stalls selling kebabs
(brochettes) often served with spicy sauces.
Restaurants mainly have waiter service and bars can have either
waiter or counter service. Laws on alcohol are quite liberal,
for non-Muslim visitors, and bars in most tourist districts stay
open very late. Beers, wines and spirits are available. Locally
produced wines, beers and mineral waters are great and
excellent value, but the imported drinks tend to be expensive.
Morocco specialities:
• Harira - a rich soup.
• Pastilla - a pigeon-meat pastry made from dozens of
different layers of flaky thick dough.
• Couscous
- a dish based on savoury semolina which can be combined with
lamb, chicken, egg or vegetables.
• Tajine is a
stew, normally rich and fragrant and using
chicken or marinated lamb.
• Hout - a fish version of the same stew.
• Djaja mahamara - chicken stuffed with almonds, semolina
and raisins.
• Kab-el-ghzal - almond pastries.
National drinks
• Mint tea - made with green tea, sugar
and fresh mint - very refreshing and its consumption is an
integral part of Moroccan social courtesy.
• Coffee
is made very strong.
Tipping
Service charges are usually included in the hotel bills and
it is customary to tip hairdressers, cinema usherettes and
waiters MAD1-2.
Nightlife
Morocco offers a good range of entertainment from casinos, restaurants,
bars, discos and nightclubs, often with belly dancing.
There are modern nightclubs in cities and resorts around the
country. There are casinos located in Agadir, Tangier, Mohammedia and Marrakech. Traditional
Moroccan entertainment, such as folk dancing, can be seen
in many towns.
Shopping
The co-operative shops of Moroccan craftspeople, coopartim,
operate under state control selling local handicrafts at fixed
prices and issue an authenticity receipt or certificate of
origin for customs when exporting goods or products.
To visit for local products, Souks are good places. Special purchases
include leather, tanned and dyed in Fès, copperware,
silver, silk or cotton garments, and wool rugs, blankets and
carpets. Bargaining is
important and necessary, and good buys generally
work out at around 1 - 3rd of the original asking price. In
the south, there are Berber carpet auctions,
particularly in Tiznit, Taroudannt and Marrakech and tourists will need a guide to make the best of these occasions.
Shopping hours
Monday-Thursday 8.30 am - 12.00 pm and 2.30 - 6.30 pm and
Friday 8.30 - 11.00 am and 3.00 - 6.30 pm. The larger stores are
open Monday-Saturday 9.00 am - 1.00 pm and 3.00 - 7.00 pm.
Souks - traditional markets- are open Monday-Sunday 8.30 am - 1.00 pm
and 2.30 - 6.00 pm.
Social
Conventions
Handshaking is the customary form of greeting in Morocco.
A number of the manners and social customs emulate the French,
especially amongst the middle class. The visitors may find,
in certain social situations, that patience and firmness will
pay dividends. Visitors may sometimes find themselves the
centre of unsolicited attention. In towns, young boys after
money will be quite eager to point out the way, sell goods
or simply charge for a photograph, while unofficial guides
will always be offering advice and services. The visitor should
be courteous but also wary of the latter. Normal social courtesies
should be observed when visiting someone’s home.
Casual wear is
broadly accepted, although swimsuits and shorts
should be confined to the beach. Women travelling alone, and/or
wearing clothes regarded as provocative (eg strappy tops,
short skirts, etc) may attract some unwanted attention. Homosexual conduct and sexual
relations outside of marriage are
punishable by law. Smoking is widespread and it is customary
to offer out cigarettes. |
