Marrakech looks like a difficult city for plant-based travellers — grilled meat on Jemaa el-Fnaa, butter in every pastry, tagines steaming behind every door. In practice it is one of the easier cities in North Africa to eat vegan in, because Moroccan home cooking is built on vegetables, pulses, bread, olive oil and nuts. This guide covers where to have vegan food in Marrakech, neighbourhood by neighbourhood, what to eat in the souks, what to avoid, and how to organise your days so you never end up eating plain salad again.
The best areas for vegan food in Marrakech
The Medina (around Riad Zitoun and Jemaa el-Fnaa)
This is where most travellers stay and where the density of vegan-friendly cafés is highest. The streets Riad Zitoun el Kdim and Riad Zitoun el Jdid run south from Jemaa el-Fnaa towards the Bahia Palace and are lined with small rooftop cafés, many of which now label vegan dishes on the menu. Everything here is walkable, but alleys are narrow and unsigned — save your places on an offline map before you go out.
Gueliz (the new town)
Gueliz is modern Marrakech: wide pavements, bakeries, coffee shops, juice bars and international menus. It is the easiest place to find plant milk in a coffee, a proper salad bowl or a bakery loaf without butter. A ten-minute taxi from the Medina, and a good escape from the midday crowds.
Sidi Ghanem and the outskirts
The Sidi Ghanem design district, north-west of the city, has concept stores and brunch cafés popular with residents. Further out, on the Ourika road and in the Palmeraie, you find bigger restaurants with separate vegan menus. Both need a taxi, so plan them as an outing rather than a quick lunch.
Vegan and vegan-friendly places to eat in Marrakech
These are the addresses travellers mention most consistently on HappyCow and in reviews. Some are fully meat-free, others are normal restaurants with clearly labelled plant-based dishes — in Marrakech the second group is where most of your meals will happen.
| Place | Area | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Earth Cafe | Medina, off Riad Zitoun el Kdim | One of the city’s original vegetarian and vegan kitchens, open since 2007, with produce from the owners’ farm. Multi-level, easy to miss — follow the hanging signs into the derb. |
| Marrakech Henna Art Cafe | Medina, Derb Sqaya | Small café and art space with clearly labelled vegan and gluten-free Moroccan dishes, lentil soup, falafel plates and fresh juices. Henna done on site. |
| Mandala Society | Medina, Riad Zitoun el Jdid | Rooftop brunch spot with chia pudding, avocado toast, bowls and dahl, plus plant milks for coffee. Upscale prices by Marrakech standards. |
| Ayaso | Medina, Kedima Square | Farm-to-table Moroccan menu with vegan breakfast options, vegetable tagine, couscous, curry and salads, on a terrace above the basket market. |
| Monquotidien | Gueliz, Rue Yougoslavie | Bakery and restaurant with quinoa and Moroccan salads, Berber vegetable tagine and vegetable couscous; kitchen will veganise other dishes on request. |
| Beldi Fusion Kitchen | Gueliz, Bd Mohamed Zerktouni | Fusion menu with hummus, aubergine plates and falafel bowls, and several dishes that can be made vegan on request. |
| Bo & Zin | Route de l’Ourika, outside the centre | Large evening restaurant with a separate vegan menu, from croquettes and salads to couscous marrakchi with vegetables and vegan desserts. Book a table and a taxi. |
Souk and street food that is already vegan
You do not need a special restaurant for every meal. Much of what is sold in the souks is plant-based by tradition:
- Bissara — a thick split-pea or broad-bean soup with olive oil, cumin and bread, sold from small counters in the morning. Ask for no butter on top.
- Khobz and msemen from neighbourhood bakeries, best eaten warm with olive oil or jam.
- Fresh orange juice from the Jemaa el-Fnaa carts, plus pomegranate in autumn.
- Dates, figs, almonds, walnuts and olives by weight in the souks — the cheapest and best travel snack in the city.
- Roasted and boiled chickpeas sold in paper cones on winter evenings.
- Mint tea everywhere, which is naturally vegan, though usually very sweet.
Start the day plant-based, wherever you sleep
We cook a full Moroccan vegan breakfast each morning and deliver it to riads, hotels and apartments across Marrakech.
Three hidden ingredients to ask about
- Smen — fermented butter, often stirred into couscous, tagines and soups at the end of cooking.
- Meat or chicken stock — commonly used to steam couscous, even when the dish is described as vegetarian.
- Honey — poured over msemen, baghrir and pastries, and sometimes mixed into amlou.
Rather than asking “is it vegan?”, name the ingredients: “bla lham, bla zebda, bla ‘assal, bla jben” (without meat, butter, honey, cheese). Kitchens in Marrakech are generally happy to adapt a dish when they understand exactly what to leave out.
Where to go: a vegan-friendly day in Marrakech
| Time | Plan |
|---|---|
| 08:30 | Vegan Moroccan breakfast delivered to your riad terrace — msemen, baghrir, amlou, fruit, juice and mint tea. |
| 10:00 | Bahia Palace and the Mellah, then the spice and basket souks on the way north. |
| 13:00 | Light lunch in the Medina: a salad selection, zaalouk and bread on a rooftop near Riad Zitoun. |
| 15:30 | Jardin Majorelle and the Yves Saint Laurent museum in Gueliz, with a coffee and plant milk nearby. |
| 18:00 | Sunset on Jemaa el-Fnaa with a fresh orange juice and a bag of dates and almonds. |
| 20:00 | Dinner at a restaurant with a labelled vegan menu, or a shared vegetable tagine ordered without smen. |
If you are taking a day trip to the Atlas Mountains, the Agafay desert or Essaouira, order breakfast for the 08:30 slot the night before and ask for it packed to travel — roadside stops rarely have plant-based food beyond bread and olives.
Eating vegan at your riad
Most riads serve a standard breakfast of bread, pastries, eggs, cheese, butter and honey. Tell the host the evening before that you eat only plant food, and they will usually manage bread, olive oil, jam and fruit — a good breakfast, but the same one every morning.
The alternative is to have a complete vegan Moroccan breakfast delivered: freshly cooked msemen and baghrir, amlou, bissara, seasonal fruit, juice and mint tea, brought to your door inside a 30-minute slot between 08:30 and 16:00, anywhere in Marrakech including inside the Medina. Delivery is 25 MAD, payment is cash on delivery, and you confirm on WhatsApp or through the booking form.
Keep reading
- Vegan breakfast delivery in Marrakech: how to order to your riad
- Vegan light lunch in Marrakech
- Traditional Moroccan vegan breakfast foods
- Vegan food culture in Marrakech
- Vegan food tours in Marrakech: souks, street food and cooking classes
- Vegan riad breakfast in Marrakech
Frequently asked questions
Is it easy to eat vegan in Marrakech?
Yes, with a little planning. Moroccan cooking is full of naturally plant-based dishes — zaalouk, taktouka, bissara, lentils, chickpeas, vegetable couscous, khobz bread, olives, dates and fruit. The three things to check are butter (smen), meat or chicken stock in couscous, and honey on breakfast pastries.
Which area of Marrakech is best for vegan food?
The Medina around Riad Zitoun has the highest concentration of vegan-friendly cafés and rooftops and is walkable from Jemaa el-Fnaa. Gueliz is better for modern cafés, bakeries and brunch, and Sidi Ghanem has a few design-district coffee and brunch spots.
How do I say vegan in Moroccan Arabic?
A practical phrase is “bla lham, bla zebda, bla ‘assal, bla jben” — without meat, without butter, without honey, without cheese. “Nabati” means plant-based. Saying the ingredients out loud works better than the word vegan alone.
Can I get vegan food delivered to my riad in the Medina?
Yes. We deliver fully plant-based breakfasts and light lunches across Marrakech, including riads in the Medina where cars cannot enter — the courier walks the last alleys. Delivery is 25 MAD, cash on delivery, and you book on WhatsApp at +212 673 991614.
Is street food in Marrakech vegan-friendly?
Some of it is: bissara soup, msemen and khobz from bakeries, fresh orange juice, roasted nuts, dates and olives from the souks. Avoid the meat grills on Jemaa el-Fnaa and check that pancakes are not brushed with butter or honey.