Oualidia

For all that we’re enjoying the food in Marrakech (and the markets really are great), there are a few culinary holes. When we were in Essaouira, we had plenty of wonderful fish, but in Marrakech it’s been decidedly harder to find. The situation is made worse by the few restaurants that offer fish; all that we’ve tried cook it till it turns to cardboard. So for two people used to eating fish regularly, it’s been a little disappointing. Over a month ago (as we’ve mentioned) we discovered the sushi at Kosy Bar, and that was quite a treat. Since then, we ventured to a French restaurant in Gueliz, Bagatelle. The menu is pretty standard bistro fare, but that includes fantastic escargot. While we both tend to think of escargot as a garlic-butter delivery vehicle, these were the most tender little critters we’ve had. Makes us think we might even be brave enough to venture to one of the snail stalls in the Place. Even more exciting at Bagatelle, however, were the local Moroccan oysters. Oualidia is a town not too far up the coast from Essaouira, and it produces a lot of seafood. The oysters were an incredible sliver of the sea, briny and plump, and we enjoyed them so much we went back two days later for more. Today, beaten down after a series of battles at the house over finish work, we knew just the restorative cure. Again, we braved the raised eyebrows of waiters who don’t think oysters and escargot make a meal, and enjoyed a culinary respite from lamb couscous.


As things settle down with our house, and we start exploring more of the Moroccan countryside, we dream of taking a field trip to Oualidia and spending a weekend eating oysters breakfast, lunch and dinner.

In the meantime, here are a few shots from the Marrakech Museum, including the largest lantern we’ve ever seen. The copper plaques pictured are from the Museum’s restrooms. Can you guess which one is for women and which for men? We couldn’t either and it wasn’t until we saw an older French man wander into the bathroom marked with the plaque on the right (his wife in tow with a video camera, no less!), that we felt relieved.