Remember Morocco
This was our first visit to Africa 4 years ago and what drew me there was "Jemaa el Fna", the lively food market in Marrakech, Morocco. I was fully aware of the fact that the official language there is either Arabic or French so there would be quite a lot of not-knowing-what's going-on happening for us absent a common language. But that did not stop me from pursuing those amazing exotic Morocco eats!
Day 1, after walking passing the maze like allies, we finally arrived at our riad, Dar Justo, a revamped traditional guest house tucked right in the middle of the old city. Welcomed by a jar of hot mint tea and delicate pastry, our worry of language barrier was soon put aside.
A refreshing and relaxing breakfast was in order the next morning. The location of the meal - the beautiful roof terrace.
Well fed and ready, we took a day trip outside of the city to explore the natural scenaries. From Berber houses to waterfalls and into the Atlas mountain, it never stopped to amaze how diverse the views were.
The highlight of the trip arrived when we stopped by Sir Branson's Kasbah Tamadot for a lunch in their garden terrace. Imagine in the middle of all the wildness, you walked into this man-made heaven-
We sat back in the sun-bathed garden and enjoyed a morocan-british meal. Frankly the food was not the key point, it was really the view that amazed us. The most memorable dish was the black tea panna cotta that later inspired me to make my own verson. The rolls made with fillo and stuffed with lamb was also quite intriguing, particular how it was called - a lamb cigar. I later realized that anything that was a roll was called a cigar on many of the restaurant menus.
To wrap up the nice lunch, a walk in the garden was a must!
After the exploration of outside city, day 2 of our agenda was inside of the old medina, mainly the square where the Jemaa el Fna was. In the bright day light, there were just a handful of venders, mostly selling juices and candies. The candies certainly caught my eyes. They were sweet and nutty. I'm pretty sure I overpaid for them, but I just couldn't resist the colorful treats.
As the evening approached, more and more venders started to set up their stands and we also started to grab what looked good. Soon we realized that our stomachs were much smaller than our eyes.
By the time the night fully set in , the square had transformed into the lively food scene that drew me here in the first place!
The main event in day 3 was my dinner plan - upscale morocan tasting in gastro mk. It is located inside of hotel maison mk. The setting is quite similiar to the raid where we stayed. Prior to the dinner, we enjoyed some complimentary snacks and cocktails on the roof terrace.
The main event took place in the very cozy inside where each dinner table was in a private room. The courses were comtempory morocan and I once again intrigued by the cigar. This time, it was a sweet version stuffed with dates. It was a lovely meal to end the day!
Before hopping into our flight back, I searched again for the morocan treats which are candies made with almond paste. They might be a little bit too sweet for my taste but they were absolutly pretty!
This was a trip that we will not forget!
