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Food Guide
Meknes Street Food Guide
Morocco's olive capital and best-value imperial city: incredible olives, preserved meats, medina tagines, and the cheapest street food in the kingdom.
Quick Tips
Budget: 15–35 MAD full meal
Best time: Lunch & sunset
Hotspot: Place el-Hedim
What to Eat in Meknes
Olives of Meknes
5–20 MAD (per portion)Meknes is Morocco's olive capital. The covered market near the medina entrance has dozens of olive vendors selling varieties you won't see elsewhere: spiced green, cracked red, preserved black, lemon-cured, harissa-marinated, and herb-infused. Buy a mixed plate (5–10 MAD) and eat them with bread. The olive oil from the Saiss plain is the best in the country — peppery, fruity, and green.
Covered market near the medina entrance and olive stalls along Rue RouamzineTip: Ask to taste before buying — the vendors expect it and the variety is incredible
Khlii (Preserved Meat)
15–30 MADMeknes makes Morocco's finest khlii — beef or lamb dried, spiced (cumin, coriander, salt), and preserved in rendered fat. Intensely flavoured, chewy, and deeply savoury. Served with fried eggs for breakfast, stuffed into msemen, or eaten with bread and olives. Khlii is traditional winter food but available year-round. The Meknassi version is reputed to be the best in the country.
Medina butchers and breakfast restaurants along Rue RouamzineTip: Khlii with eggs (khlii b'lbeid) and fresh bread is the imperial breakfast — filling and flavourful
Medina Tagines
20–40 MADThe cheapest tagines in any imperial city. Chicken with olives and preserved lemons, kefta (meatball) tagine with egg, lamb with prunes and almonds, and vegetable tagine — all cooked slowly on charcoal in the small restaurants along Rue Rouamzine and the medina lanes. The olive oil in Meknes tagines is noticeably better than elsewhere — it's local and fresh.
Small restaurants along Rue Rouamzine and the medina lanesTip: The restaurants with the most locals eating in them have the best tagines — simple rule
Harira
3–4 MADMeknes harira is rich, meaty, and substantial — the Saiss plain provides excellent chickpeas and lentils. Served from late afternoon at soup stalls throughout the medina and on Place el-Hedim. During Ramadan, the square transforms into a massive outdoor dining hall. The cheapest harira in Morocco at just 3 MAD in most places.
Soup stalls on Place el-Hedim, throughout the medina, and along Rue RouamzineTip: The harira stalls on Place el-Hedim at sunset are the most atmospheric in Morocco
Bocadillos & Sandwiches
8–15 MADThe cheapest bocadillos in Morocco. Crusty baguettes stuffed with kefta, merguez, tuna, egg, or chicken — the fast-food staple of every Meknassi worker. The sandwich shops near the medina entrances and along the ville nouvelle's main streets do a roaring trade at lunchtime. At 8–15 MAD, it's hard to find a cheaper filling meal anywhere in Morocco.
Medina entrances, ville nouvelle (Avenue Hassan II), and near Place el-HedimTip: The kefta bocadillo with olives and harissa is the Meknes version — the olives make it
Msemen & Breakfast
1–3 MADGriddle-cooked flatbreads from dawn until mid-morning. Msemen (flaky), baghrir (spongy crêpes), and rghaif (stuffed with herbs or cheese). Eaten with honey, olive oil, or butter. At 1–2 MAD for msemen, Meknes has the cheapest breakfast in Morocco. The griddle stalls near the medina gates and in the market area are the busiest.
Griddle stalls near medina gates, the covered market, and along Rue RouamzineTip: Msemen dipped in local olive oil and honey is the Meknassi breakfast — simple and incredible
Place el-Hedim Snacks
5–20 MADMeknes's grand square — the equivalent of Marrakech's Jemaa el-Fnaa but smaller, calmer, and cheaper. Evening snack stalls sell: grilled corn, snail soup (babbouche), dried fruits, peanuts, and nougat. The juice carts line the edges. The view of illuminated Bab Mansour while eating snails and drinking orange juice is pure Morocco — without the Marrakech prices or hustle.
Place el-Hedim — the grand square in front of Bab MansourTip: Go at sunset when Bab Mansour is illuminated and the snack stalls are setting up
Fresh Juices
4–10 MADThe cheapest fresh juice in Morocco. Orange juice from 4 MAD (vs 5–8 MAD in other cities), avocado smoothies from 8 MAD, and seasonal pomegranate juice from 6 MAD. The juice carts on Place el-Hedim and at the medina entrances are the most popular. The Saiss plain oranges are sweet and the competition between vendors keeps prices rock-bottom.
Place el-Hedim juice carts, medina entrances, and along Rue RouamzineTip: The cheapest fresh orange juice in Morocco — 4 MAD is standard here
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Frequently Asked Questions
What food is Meknes known for?
Meknes is Morocco's olive capital — the surrounding Saiss plain produces the country's best olives and olive oil. The city is known for: incredible olives (dozens of varieties at the market), khlii (preserved meat — Meknes makes the best in Morocco), harira, olive oil tagines, and the cheapest restaurant food in any imperial city. Meknes also produces excellent wine from the surrounding vineyards. The food is authentic, untouristy, and incredibly good value.
Where is the best street food in Meknes?
The best street food areas in Meknes: Place el-Hedim (the grand square — snack stalls, juice vendors, and restaurants overlooking Bab Mansour), the covered market near the medina (olive vendors, spice stalls, cooked food), Rue Rouamzine (the medina's main food street — grills, bakeries, and sweet shops), and the area around the Mausoleum of Moulay Ismail. Meknes receives fewer tourists than Fes or Marrakech, so prices reflect what locals pay.
Is Meknes cheaper than Fes for food?
Yes — Meknes is significantly cheaper than Fes for food. Tagine: 20–35 MAD (vs 35–60 MAD in Fes). Harira: 3–4 MAD. Bocadillo: 8–15 MAD. Fresh juice: 4–8 MAD. A filling lunch in the medina costs 20–40 MAD ($2–4). Even the tourist restaurants on Place el-Hedim are cheap by Moroccan standards. Meknes is arguably the best value-for-money eating city in Morocco.