Moroccan Food on the Go: How and Where to Picnic in Morocco

One of the best ways to eat well, cheaply, and healthily in Morocco is to ‘self-cater,’ which for me mainly means picnicking. Moroccan food means not only great prepared dishes but also terrific produce. No, you don’t have the same selection of cheeses or meats (especially not ham, salami, etc.) here that you might find in Europe. (I don’t mess around with the turkey-based "ham" products or the meat-in-a-can.) But you can still put together an excellent and nourishing spread–while tasting Morocco’s outstanding fresh produce–relatively easy, just about anywhere. 

People often ask about eating raw fruit and vegetables in Morocco. The short answer is yes. I have two secret tools here: 1) a vegetable peeler and 2) white vinegar. 

I pick up a peeler when I first arrive. Virtually all Moroccan cities have stores that sell a range of cheap plasticware and utensils – I duck in for a corkscrew and a vegetable peeler. I’ll peel things like cucumbers, carrots, and sometimes apples. The vinegar is for most other things: peppers, berries, tomatoes, fresh spinach. I douse everything with a little vinegar, rub it all over, let it sit in water while I give another quick scrub, and then I rinse thoroughly. It's never been a problem for me, but anything peeled should be safe no matter what.

Some sliced cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, a couple bananas, maybe a few of the clementine oranges Morocco is famous for. Now it’s time to find some bread. Morocco’s bread game is superb in every way: the French influence brought with it good baguettes and croissants (as well as other patisserie), but Morocco has its own tradition of breadmaking, ranging from the standard wheels of khobz to the wide array of pancake-like breads cooked atop a griddle. You cannot go wrong. You can find a decent loaf of khobz at most any hanut, or corner store, where you can also procure snacks, butter, olive oil, bottled water, and drinks, plus hard-boiled eggs ready to go. If you’re staying in one place for a few days, be sure to duck into your corner store early and make yourself a regular. It’s a great way to get a sense of a neighborhood’s rhythm. 

From there, if you’re around a market, you might be able to grab a wheel of fresh cheese. Look for thick, circular disks that look somewhere between goat cheese and feta. Even better if they are wrapped in palm leaves, something found most often in northern Morocco around Tangier, Tetuan, and Chefchaouen. Reliable, non-local alternatives include the red-wax covered Edam, available at a hanut or supermarket, "La Vache Qui Rit" and any number of spreadable cheese alternatives. If you’re in a big city, Marjane or Carrefour supermarkets will carry plenty of imported European cheeses. Keep in mind that little corner stores will often make you a wheel of bread stuffed with egg, spreadable cheese, salt, and cumin (you can omit the cumin but I recommend it).

For a proper feast, I’d make sure to pick up some dried dates, figs, or apricots, or all three, easily found from small shops around town. Morocco can be dusty, so I like to give these things a good rinse before diving in, although sometimes I just go for it. You brought Pepto, right? It'll be fine. I like to grab an interesting flavor of potato chips/crisps too; maybe kefta flavored? Anything with the image of a kebab on the bag will suffice. And for whatever reason, we buy a lot of Bounty bars while we're there (do we have these in the US?), so it's either that or some gazelle horn cookies for dessert.

To wash it down, there are the ubiquitous global soft drink brands. For me, Schweppes Citron–a little harder to find but widely available–is the way to go. But for the uninitiated, it’s worth trying Poms (an apple-flavored soda) or Hawai (a sort of tropically soda). Both, in my opinion, are sickly sweet and kinda gross, but what’s the point in traveling if not to find out for yourself?

Now, where to picnic? In general, Moroccan urban centers lack green space, but just about anywhere will do. Your hotel is likely to have a rooftop terrace that would make a great picnic spot. Cafes are generally happy to have you bring your bread and cheese or snacks to the table, although you should buy your drinks from them and avoid doing this at cafes that serve food. But if you do want a park, a few suggestions:

• Rabat: The hillside outside Chellah, Ibn Sina Park (aka "Parc Hilton"), the grounds of the Bibliothèque nationale du royaume du Maroc (BNRM), on the steps or the rocks near the National Photography Museum.

• Tangier: Mendoubia Garden, Corniche park (long stretch along the bay), Marshan Park.

• Fes: Jnan Sbil (between Fes al Bali and Fes al Jadid), Place Boujeloud, all along Avenue Hassan II, on the hillside by the Merenid Tombs or Borj Nord/Sud

• Marrakesh: Cyber Park Moulay Abdeslam, Parc Lalla Hasna, Menara Gardens, Jardin Sidi Mimoun