One of the cities Jordan and I were most excited about visiting in Morocco was Essaouira. In fact, we applied to volunteer there, and by we applied, I mean that I was determined to spend at least a month there, and ended up applying to multiple surf hostels (most of them more than once)
And I’ll be honest, when none of them worked out, I was a little bit devastated. Jordan and I spent countless hours almost every day back in Scotland, crouched in the castle kitchen (the only place with wifi) filling our applications to hostels all along the coast of Morocco. Eventually, after what felt like 30 attempts, we finally landed a position... just not in Essaouira.
Instead, we got to spend two months in the smaller town of Anza, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Still, I was determined to visit Essaouira, even if only for a weekend. So Jordan and I finessed our schedule one weekend so we had a full two days off from volunteering to stay there.
We took the Souk 2 Surf bus up the coast to Essaouira, which made everything very easy, though the winding cliff roads between Taghazout and Imsouane did make me a bit carsick. The switchbacks here rival even those of the Amalfi Coast (just with fewer guardrails.)
We made it to Essaouira just before sunset, so we got to watch the sun go down over the old port. Although it was beautiful, it was so cold! We were warned how windy Essaouira gets, but we didn’t want to believe how just how strong the winds were. We quickly regretted not packing our warm clothes.
Afterwards, we decided to check into our airbnb before heading out to dinner. Our place was at the end of a little dead end street, which you would think would be shaded from the wind, but no. The alley channeled the wind like a cannon, blasting us with sand while we searched fro the door. With sandy and dry eyes, we arrived at the airbnb to find it Bojack Horseman themed, reminding us that we needed to revisit watching that show soon.
If theres one thing you need to know about Jordan, its that he loves crepes. He got such a reputation for it at our Anza hostel that the owner gave us a specific Essaouira crepe recommendation before we left, Crêpes Hicham.
We tried to go for breakfast, only to learn it didn’t open until evening. So on our second night, we lined up 15 minutes before opening, and we were the only non-locals there. That’s when we knew we were in the right place.
Eventually about 15 minutes after the scheduled time, the metal grate opens and reveals one man standing with his four crepe plates, and he puts out a box of numbered tickets. We grabbed one and discovered we were number 17, despite being sixth in line. I know a few numbers were missing from the pile, but also many people grabbed more than one ticket for their friends who had not waited in line for the place to open.
Almost immediately after opening, the chef fired up the crepe plates and got started cooking. Jordan and I were in awe, the crepes looked insanely good, filled to the brim with food, no skimping on the meat and filling here. So yes, we spent most of our evening in line, but I’d say it was worth it. The crepes were delicious, and far more filling than any other crepes you’d find anywhere, even despite our hunger ramping up over the two hour wait period, the crepes bested us in the end and we had our leftovers for breakfast.
But crepes weren’t the only food that we ate in Essaouira (although possibly the majority). Coming from Anza, where food options are limited and mostly simple, Essaouira felt like a dream. We made it our mission to eat as much food as we could.
Being a bit closer to the north of Morocco, we rediscovered pastilla. A flaky phyllo pastry often filled with spiced chicken and almonds. In Essaouira, they also offer seafood pastilla, which we sadly didn’t get to try, which I am devastated about as our taxi driver in Fes spoke very highly of it.
We did also eat more crepes, both more savory crepes and more sweet crepes. In Anza, we are limited to sweet crepes and really the only thing you can get is chocolate banana, so we made sure to load up in Essaouira.
Other than Marrakesh, Essaouira might be one of the best places for variety and accessibility for the food scene in Morocco. Plus, you don’t have too many places that really try to drag you to their restaurant like there is in Fes and Marrakesh. But compared to the little town of Anza, be prepared for the prices to be just a bit higher.
Most of our two days were spent wandering the Medina, soaking in the colors, textures, and sounds of the city. Compared to Marrakesh, the vibe was much more relaxed. Fewer pushy vendors, more space to walk, and far less chaos.
Despite its smaller size, Essaouira’s markets were some of the most upscale we’d seen in Morocco. With curated displays, artisanal goods, fixed prices in some stalls. It made browsing much more relaxing, but again, expect a slight uptick in prices compared to other medinas.
I also really enjoyed checking out the fish market here. With the classic Essaouira massive cats patrolling and making sure no part of the fish gets wasted. Here, you can buy a fish and take it to be grilled at the restaurant right next door. Quite a few other places in Morocco will do this, but I never got the chance to try it.
I loved Essaouira. I would go back in a heartbeat. It was so upbeat and positive. There’s still so many things that I want to do in Essaouira that I didn't get the chance to on this trip due to time restraints, but trust me. I will be back. And next time I’m bringing an empty checked bag to fill with goodies to bring back home.
Those crepes look amazing! That's something we don't eat a lot of here in the South! I think there is one crepe place that I know of in Charlotte.
Looks like you could buy an empty crepe and fill that with goodies, it's huge.
Yum yum yum!