The New Normal - Eating in Morocco

Some days it seems that I do nothing but eat!  The food in Casa can be unbelievably tasty, while other dishes I might describe as, well let's say, "mysterious".

Breakfast spread at GWA

School lunches at GWA are generally tasty, and very reasonably priced at only 25 Dh, about $2.50.  They are definitely not what you would typically think about when you imagine a school lunch.  Most days I buy lunch and bring half of it home for Richard to eat the next day for his lunch.  There is always salad and fruit, along with a beautiful (usually Moroccan) main dish, and, of course, some sort of French patisserie for dessert. Also included is French bread and a choice of water or soda.  There is almost always some ingredient on my plate that I can't identify (for better or for worse)!  Below is a typical lunch at GWA and one of the breakfasts provided for orientation.  Eat your hearts out, Canterbury and GDS!

The salad usually has unusual ingredients

Yet more GWA food at Danielle's party

There are hundreds of restaurants around the city, so we've barley scratched the surface when it comes to eating out.  There is a place called "Leo's" right next door to us; they serve mostly Italian food. I've eaten spaghetti and pizza there, but Richard is usually more adventurous, ordering tajine and other Moroccan dishes.  

Tajine at Leo's

We discovered another Italian place called Luigi over by St. John's church.  We went there with some new friends from church last Sunday.  There are also many little places around the city, most of which I really don't trust the food.  After getting food poisoning my first week, I will only eat at very nice restaurants, at school, or at home.

Luigi's Italian Restaurant

You might not think you could get a dish like this at an Italian place; like I said "mysterious".

Coffee at Luiji's

Coffee is an interesting phenomenon in Casa.  There are coffee cafe's on every corner.  You mostly see men there, but I have seen the occasional woman as well.  Generally they drink the coffee out of small glasses.  Richard has ordered black coffee a few times, but really ends of getting served a drink more like espresso.  Luckily, we were able to find a great coffee maker for the house, and Richard is able to buy ground coffee at the local grocery stores.  There are also a number of Starbucks shops in Casa, unusual for Africa.

Tea is also a big deal here.  Very sweet mint tea is widely available. During orientation GWA's kitchen staff presented a traditional Moroccan tea ceremony, which was very nice.  I have been able to find regular black tea here and I still enjoy a cup each morning. Unfortunately, I can't find decaf black tea, and I really miss not having a cup in the evenings.

Tea ceremony at GWA

There are French boulangerie's (bakeries) on every corner, which specialise in French pastries and other treats.  They also serve French pastries, and other awesome treats in most of the restaurants where we've eaten.  Fruit is also a typical offering for dessert, along with ice cream.  The ice cream tastes less sweet to me than what you would typically get in the U.S., and it is very creamy.

Susan ready to eat ice cream and fruit at Luigi's

Dessert choices at Luigi's

I wonder which looks better!

Yummy pie

You can actually eat at McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Burger King and KFC!  We walked over to Pizza Hut for fun last weekend, and had lunch there.  The food was comforting somehow, and they have a very unusual "Moroccan" salad bar.  Outside the restaurant were the delivery motor cycles.

Pizza delivery vehicles

Meat lovers, of course, but what kind of meat is the question.

There are a number of informal restaurants around that look more like butcher shops.  You walk up to a meat case, pick out what you want and have it weighed.  They hand it to the cook, who prepares your meal.

One thing I miss when eating out is the ice in drinks.  Soft drinks and water are served cold (sort of), but you never see ice.  One of the first things we did when we arrived was to buy ice cube trays. But, you have to make the ice using bottled water.  Speaking of water, we buy bottled water for everything and use it for drinking and cooking.  It feels so wrong throwing out all those plastic bottles, but that's just the way it is here.

Something that has not changed, I absolutely prefer the delicious meals prepared by my husband.  He has scoured the city looking for our favorite ingredients.  Richard has found such delicacies as barbecue sauce, a facsimile of Texas Pete, grated Parmesan cheese, popcorn, and even Pringles!  He has prepared ginger chicken (poule), turkey (dinde) pie and massive amounts of cooked veggies. Richard is bummed that he has been unable to find a slow cooker anywhere, but we are making do for now.  And, alas, no pork (but, working on getting to the commissary.)

Slaving over a hot stove!  What he does for love!!