Dar Yacout, Marrakech

For our last night in Marrakech, we take our wonderful Riad owners advice and have booked a table at Yacout. We were even lucky to get a reservation with only a few days notice .... This is where anyone-who-is-anyone must dine while in Marrakech, well so we hear. Having played host to a string of celebrities, royalty and presidents from all over the world. We head down to the Kasbah gate in search of some means of transport to take us well within the realm of the Medina. It just so happens that a horse cart pulls up beside us. We check that he knows where it is, which of course he does. We hop into the back seat, which is surprisingly comfortable. The sun is setting, and the lights over the city are so pretty.



It takes about 20 minutes, darting through busy evening traffic, but having plenty of time to take it all in.



We are taken through winding, pebbled walkways of the medina, barely wide enough for the cart. We all of a sudden stop, when it gets really narrow, and way to busy for us to continue. The driver calls over a couple of young boys, and mutters a few words. We work out that these kids are going to lead us the remainder of the way .... We dart in and out of lanes, being just dark enough to be a little unsettling as you can't really see to far ahead, but we turn one last corner and we are there. We give the kids a few dollars, and thank them for their trouble.

Dar Yacout is quite grand. We walk through some large doors before being greeted by a team of staff, and quickly ushered up to the roof for an aperitif. We look down over the pool, and outside dining area on one side, and then an expansive view of the old city contained within the medina, and the bustle of the new city in the distance.



This is one of very few places that serves alcohol in Morocco. This is also the first time in our 11 day trip that we have any, so decide on a simple aperitif of white wine. It comes served in a beautiful goblet, with a bowl of green sultanas and some lightly toasted almonds.



We are then taken down to our table, and offered local Spring water as well as a selection of wines. We choose a Moroccan Rose. It was light, crisp and a beautiful rose color with the crystal glasses glistening under the dim light.



The usual Moroccan salad component of the meal arrives promptly. Little plates of spiced olives, carrot & orange salad, roasted garlic eggplant, zalouk, artichokes & little crispy pastries. These are all devoured with the infinite supply of soft bread.



These beautifully adorned vessels then arrive and rest beside the table.



The first unveiling reveals the oh-to-familiar chicken, preserved lemon & olive tagine. Shockingly, it is a whole chicken! just for the two of us ... we know there is more food to come, so despite it being delicious have to refrain from eating too much.



There is then a tagine of lamb with fresh peas. A massive portion again, we don't even get half way through it ....



Cous-cous with 7 vegetables is a fine example of this preparation, and a very welcome accompaniment to the lamb tagine.



We see a sweet pastilla placed down on the table beside us while we are finishing our main. They are as shocked as we seem with the sheer size, barely managing to get through a 1/4 of it. We wonder what happens with all of the remaining food .... as grand as each of the dishes seem, receiving whole chickens, or giant pastilla, we could have easily had 2 very hungry guests with us and no extra food. As soon as we indicate defeat against the lamb & cous-cous, it is whisked away. Moments later our table is graced with one giant pastilla.



It is absolutely delicious, layers of crisp, flaky pastry with toasted almonds and sweet milk. We manage one slice each, before a pot of mint tea and a tower of fresh baked sweets and cookies completely wipe us out. Oh .. so .. full!

An absolutely amazing setting, the pre-dinner drinks in the upstairs bar with a view of the city a highlight. The food was nice, but next time we will be sure to enjoy it with a few more people ....

Cone of Chips; street-food in Marrakech

Way back last Spring on our holiday in Morocco, we were slightly startled when we went to withdraw money from Kim's bank account, and it wouldn't work! Then we tried mine, and my debit card had somehow long expired for my Australian bank account, without us realizing .... Herein lies the importance of traveling with various forms of currency. We of course had our credit cards to get us through, and always have some travelers cheques. We were then hustling around trying to find a currency exchange or bank that accepted travelers cheques (harder than you think in Morocco).

Time was ticking .... We needed some cash for small, daily transactions. We were running from bank to bank, trying to find one that would cash American Express cheques. When suddenly there was a major distraction,



A little street-side cart, with a small light dangling overhead and a whole glass cabinet full of fried potatoes. Thin, crisp, golden potatoes. We scrounge together a few coins, for this brief moment not worrying about tomorrow, or money for a cab home.. The crisps are simply scooped up in a simple paper cone... still warm, glistening in the afternoon sun with little diamonds of salt reflecting in the light.



..... now, back to finding a bank.

Café d'épices, Marrakech

During our time in Morocco, we did not miss or even notice the lack of alcohol. At a few of the bigger establishments, you were able to get a Casablanca beer or a very limited selection of wine. One beverage that we were both very pleased to have reasonably available was coffee. Beautifully roasted beans, some brewed in a pot and others through more modern espresso machines ... We found one little place in the square where we were stopping by for our Café d'épices fix. The beans are roasted and blended with a range of spice, including cinnamon & cardamon.



Rich, toasty flavors from the beans, with delicate undertones from the spice. A great boost to get you through the rest of the day.

Tanjia

Tanjia is both the name of the dish as well as the dish it is cooked in. A tall clay urn that is filled with all sorts of goodies and baked slowly in coals. We had been told that traditionally this was a beggars dish, the beggar collecting whatever people would give, in the urn then leaving it in the coals of the fires used to heat the water of the traditional baths until it had all been cooked to a melting softness.

Nowadays it's also considered a bit of a bachelors dish as well, perhaps due to it's low maintenance and degree of skill required. Being a traditional dish of Marrakech we had been keeping and eye out for any sign of the tanjia. We finally find a small shop with a dozen urns of various sizes lined up out the front. Sealed with paper they must have been put into the coals in the early morning to be ready for midday.



We take a sit and order a tanjia for two, the proprietor reaches into his brick oven and pulls out a tanjia.



It's brought to the table before being unsealed and turned over into a clay plate. The billowing steams brings mouth watering smells, spices, herbs, and the lamb, so meltingly soft it's falling from the bone.



With another couple of the ubiquitous flat breads we're ready to go. The lamb fat has rendered out of the meat making it sticky soft and so rich. We scoop up the juices with the bread and suck the marrow from the bones. Leaving a clean plate and even cleaner bones when we've finished.



Next to us a Morrocan family have ordered the head. It's withdrawn from the urn before being split in two, revealing the creamy brain. We might need a few more people to tackle that one.
I recommend you keep an eye out for the tanjia as it makes a great change from the sometimes endless parade of tagine and cous cous.

Marrakech Tagine

So we were on our way to lunch. Meeting with I and H and they're LATE.... I guess It's understandable y'know being in a strange town in a strange country and all. On the plus side it gave us time to read the menu of our chosen dining venue and watch the type of clients who were dining there. In this case it was tourist groups and it dawned on us maybe this wasn't the type of place we wanted to be eating. So we started to scout around within minutes we found what we were looking for, an alley with a line of tagines up against the wall a steady steam of these were being picked up and carried off for delivery lunches.



Basic math; Busy with locals = good food. So when I and H arrive we veto our current plans and head down the alley. It's a simple affair, a dozen tagines sitting over glowing coals, a choice of chicken or lamb, with or without bread. You order a tagine it is whipped off the coals and placed in front of you. Another is then made by the hugely funny teen assistant (swimming in his butchers coat that he'll grow into in about twenty years) and replaced on the coals. The teen asks if we're American, to which we reply "no", his answer of "good" earns him a clip around the ears.



A lift of the lid reveals potatoes, carrots, peas, tomato and herbs plus your protein of choice it's fragrant and simple....simply delicious.



We have no trouble finishing our portions, but in case you can't you just save half of your bread and it's split open, stuffed with the remainder of your tagine and wrapped for a later snack.



We eat there several times in our stay, each time the various locals eating there greet us with a nod that seems to say "I see your not eating at the tourist trap next door....well done". If you seem to be coming back often enough you are invited to pre-order for the next day, with a seafood or special vegetable tagine on that menu. Maybe next time.

Marrakech Night Markets, stall no. 32

When we see our delightful host at breakfast the next morning, we are quick to tell him how very much we enjoyed dinner at no. 14. We also told him about our discovery of the Moroccan viagra, to which he found very funny ;) We spoke about our plans for the day, which inevitably would lead back to the night markets ... Stall no. 32 was another of his recommendations. Grilled sausages and other meats .... He warned us that there was a delightful chopped up mix of insides, that was super delicious and full of charcoal, but also advises we probably won't like that ... all the more reason we want to try it!

As the sun goes down, we head back to the night markets armed with the no. 32. We arrive a little early and all the stalls are still setting up. We grab a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice and just perch to watch the scrambling before dinner.



As the food stalls come to life, we spot to corner that just has smoke billowing above and smells of grilling meats.



We order some bread & grilled meguez to start. The bread is placed on the paper in front of us, again our only implement for eating with this evening, other than our nimble fingers of course. A little dish of fresh tomato sauce that is packed full of fresh herbs, cummin & pepper accompanies the bread. There are hundreds of little merguez sizzling away on the grill, popping and twisting in anticipation. A completely random number is just scooped up onto a little stainless plate and set before us.



We sit enjoying our sausages, mopping up all of the rich red fat that is on the bottom of the plate with our bread. We're not quite sure what this chopped insides thing is so we are on the watch. We see a wrapped parcel reset on a silver tray and placed directly into the coals. When it comes out, the parcel is pierced and out explodes this chopped mess. We grab a grill boys attention and proclaim our need for one of these plates .... We see a little parcel come out, and be placed into the charcoal. Yay, just for us. It arrives and the smell is intoxicating. Herbs, spice, meat, offal, charcoal. We have managed to save enough bread to mop this chopped mess up, delicious with a splash of their home made tomato sauce.



Now that has certainly whet the appetite, time to find dinner.

Moroccan Viagra

We are on our way back home after a delightful meal at stall no. 14 where we notice a few little carts on the outskirts of the square that are just flooded with men hovering at the counter, drinking this deep red elixir and eating some sort of paste. We are intrigued, so head on over ... Looks like the father is cheif elixir man, but he has his son there helping him out who speaks a little English. We enquire and at first he giggles. He then tells us that this tea is made up of a very special mix filled with herbs, spice and things like ginseng & gurana. Then there is the paste, which is also full of spices and other things.



We each order a tea, and choose to share 2 of the plates of spice paste. The tea is strong of ginger aroma and taste, and another 50 or so things that you can taste, but can't identify. The paste, wow, is like eating a spoonful of raw spice that is also sickly sweet with some sort of dark sugar.

The young guy, still giggling, then tells us that all the men stop by these stalls on their way home, as this is a form of natural viagra.



Well, wandering home we do all get some sort of buzz .... the true effects felt later ;)

Marrakech Night Markets, stall no. 14

We had a close call at the Fez train station with Io & H unable to find their passports the morning we are departing for Marrakech ... So with taxi's back to the riad, and turning the room upside down, all 4 of us are now in possession of travel documents and manage to board our train in the nick of time. It's a hot day, the train winding through little villages with children playing, sheep running free and so much trash on the outskirts of each town. We keep ourselves amused with some interesting conversation, some amazing pomegranite juice & chicken sandwiches on board the train as well as sneaking in a little nap. Before we know it, hours have passed and we arrive in Marrakech. We are greeted at the train station and transported to our Riad Dar Tasnime. Now after any amount of travelling, there are 2 things very high on the priority list; shower & eat. We are taken up to our suite which smells of orange blossom, and is the warm welcoming color of terracotta with rich fabrics and open doors sprawling out over the courtyard.



Ah, I could just collapse on the bed and be done with day. *"~Focus, shower & eat. So back on track we ask our delightful host if he has any dinner recommendations or suggestions at the night markets. Immediately we start talking about what food we will find down there, what food we had been enjoying in Fes, our time in Morocco, our home and it's food in Japan .... Our host then shares one of his little secrets, a bustling little stall amongst the 100 or so open-aired kitchens that serves up some incredible fried fish & seafood with salads and bread. We make our way towards the Jemaa El Fna square, which is the largest outdoor souk (market) in Morocco. It's just on sunset, and there are performers, snake charmers, henna artists, games & live music. The outside of the square in lined with carts selling fresh squeezed juice and all sorts of dried fruits, and then east side which is full of these little outdoor stalls setting up for tonight's dinner.



As we first enter the markets, we pass through a gathering of stalls all selling steamed snails. We then enter the mayhem, stalls with printed fancy menus, displays on ice of giant shiskebabs and mock terrines, and young boys who will say or do just about anything to have you come and eat at their stall "Stall no. 7 will send you to heaven" We are determined to find this stall no. 14 but there is absolutely no system with these numbers. We turn a corner and notice a tiny little stand, full of locals, chowing down on all sorts of delicious looking treats. And then we spot the no. 14 sign. Ahah, perfect. No young boys drawing you in, no menu, no food on display, except for the piles of fried fish that are getting distributed as fast as they can be cooked ....

A spot is cleared for us, and paper placemats plonked in front of us topped with a bread roll & a plate of chips. Then little dishes of a fresh tomato sauce, and a plate of smashed up & seasoned fried eggplant. No cutlery is provided, the tools of choice here are your fingers as well as the bread to scoop up any sauces.




Thankful for Ioanna's ability with the French language we just start ordering ... Fried chunk of fish, sitting on a plastic plate with a single fried chili & a wedge of lemon. The exterior was so crispy yet encased the most tender & moist fish flesh imaginable.



Fried calamari rings set a new standard for these fried favorites. The coating was seasoned so well, yet had no overpowering flavors. A good squeeze of lemon was all they needed, tasting fresh like the ocean.



Then we had some MFF, Moroccan Fried Fish. Bite sized pieces of coated fish, yum yum!



We see a tray of little whiting fish come out of the fryer, and rely on the old point & nod trick. We finish with these little fishies, this time with a squeeze of fresh lime.



We are quick to vacate our precious seats, as there is still a que of people waiting for their chance at a seat. There a little sink where you wash your hands, before being handed a sheet of placemat paper to dry them. We then pay the very modest bill coming in at around 12€ per / person.

Getting a glimpse of the little mobile kitchen as we leave is quite a site ... vats of scalding hot oil balance on rickety legged tables, makeshift sinks / benches and storage are showing ware from daily assembling and disassembling. But the fresh ingredients and team work shines.

We know we will be paying at least another visit to no. 14 on this trip .... Now, back to the Riad to collapse in bed.