9 cafés in 5 citys. Places change: check opening hours before you go.
Historic
Bacha Coffee (Dar el Bacha)
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Historic · Dar el Bacha, Route Sidi Abdelaziz, Marrakech medina
Bacha Coffee began inside Dar el Bacha, the palace built in 1910 for Thami El Glaoui, pasha of Marrakech, where guests once gathered over pots of Arabica. After 60 years closed it reopened as a coffee room serving 100% Arabica from around the world, now inside the palace that houses the Museum of Confluences.
Order: A pot of single-origin Arabica
💡 The palace was damaged in the 2023 earthquake and closed for repairs, so check opening before you go.
Fewer recent sources for this one: check it's open before you go.
Opened in 1921 on a clifftop over the Bay of Tangier, Café Hafa keeps its original terraces stepping down toward the Strait of Gibraltar, with Spain visible across the water. Paul Bowles, William S. Burroughs, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones all sat here.
Order: Mint tea
💡 Come for sunset and take a terrace seat facing Spain.
Historic · Petit Socco (Souk Dakhel), Tangier medina
In diplomatic-era Tangier the Petit Socco was the city's hub of news, with the British, Spanish, German and French post offices around it. Gran Café Central, on the square's north side, is one of that era's iconic establishments still open today.
Order: Coffee · Mint tea
💡 Lost in the medina? People will offer to lead you to Café Central, a handy landmark.
Fewer recent sources for this one: check it's open before you go.
Local tradition · since 2006 · 7 Derb El Magana, Talaa Kbira, Fez medina
Mike Richardson founded Café Clock after a 2006 visit to Fez, naming it after the centuries-old water clock facing the Bou Inania Madrasa. It fills a 250-year-old townhouse with a rooftop terrace, live music every night and classes in cooking, calligraphy and oud.
Order: Mint tea · Coffee
💡 Ask for the roof terrace and listen for the call to prayer.
Local tradition · 224 Derb Chtouka, Kasbah, Marrakech
The Marrakech branch of Café Clock sits in a converted old house in the Kasbah quarter. Like the original in Fez, it mixes Moroccan food and coffee with storytelling, music and workshops.
Local tradition · Andalusian Gardens, Kasbah des Oudayas, Rabat
A terrace café inside the Kasbah des Oudayas looking out over the river mouth and the sea. Order mint tea and sugary pastries, and stay as long as you like.
Order: Mint tea · Moroccan pastries
Fewer recent sources for this one: check it's open before you go.
A small café-restaurant high in the Kasbah, on the highest point of Tangier's medina, with panoramic views. Dishes are cooked in a traditional wood oven and the fresh juices are generous.
Order: Coffee · Fresh ginger and pomegranate juice
Fewer recent sources for this one: check it's open before you go.