Marrakech may not have a huge nightlife scene, but there have been (small) chic bar openings in the Medina and Gueliz in recent years. Highlights include a chic industrial-style wine bar, a lively rooftop terrace with views of the old town, and several chic venues for sophisticated cocktails. In the Medina, the most traditional part of the city, alcohol licenses are restricted and only a few restaurants and riads have proper bars licensed to serve alcohol, although most riads sell beer and wine to guests in the privacy of their inner courtyards.
Read on to learn our expert’s top tips; For more inspiration, here are our guides to Marrakech’s best restaurants, attractions, shopping and hotels, as well as how to spend a weekend in the city.
Medina
La Mamounia
Since Netflix launched inventing AnnaThe 2022 series about New York hustler and influencer Anna Delvey (who stayed at La Mamounia while on the run), hotel and bar, was the place to see and be seen. Parisian interior design firm Jouin Manku’s stylish new renovation has upped the ante even further, with silky sage green banquettes beneath Majorelle’s gorgeous green and yellow ceiling and inviting table ‘islands’ on the outdoor terrace overlooking the stunning garden. The service is impeccable, although eccentric at times, the cocktails are perfectly mixed and the wine list is encyclopedic. Dress to impress.
To contact: mamounia.com
Price:%s: £££
cabana
A tropical rooftop beach bar, Marrakech truly has it all. Kabana is the brainchild of music entrepreneur Kudo Fahkredine; Manager Diego is the founder of Rak Electronicik. Although there’s plenty of food (sushi bar and creative tapas) the scene here really revolves around the music and the bar. Jazz, soul, disco and salsa nights are held on weekends with DJs and live bands (follow their social media for updates). The gorgeous rooftop terrace, adorned with tropical prints and large potted plants, feels like being at home in Los Angeles. It attracts a cosmopolitan crowd who sip travel-inspired cocktails like the CopaKabana Saffron, which combines cachaça (infused with traditional saffron). talouine) with green lemon and cane sugar.
To contact: kabana-marrakech.com
Price:%s: ££
DarDar on the Roof
A restaurant-bar with a friendly personality and absolutely stunning views, from the rooftops of the Medina to Koutoubia and even the High Atlas in winter. Most people come for sunset cocktails and then stay for a simple dinner of gourmet burgers, steaks and spicy shrimp. If you want to sit on the roof terrace, which is hung with fancy cut brass lanterns, you need to make a reservation in advance. However, it is still very enjoyable to sit in the elegant restaurant with large windows on the first floor. There is often live music and the service is fast and professional.
To contact: rooftopdardar.com
Price:%s: ££
cafe arab
Located in the upscale Mouassine, Café Arabe’s rooftop terrace is a good place for Medina drinks. Downstairs, tables sit comfortably in the decorative-tiled courtyard, while upstairs, curvy beige sofas surround the shaded terrace, magically illuminated by candlelight at night. Affordable bottles of peppery Siroua S. attract a fun crowd who come here for glasses of rosé and passable cocktails. A Moroccan-Italian dinner menu is offered, although the food is a bit bland. It’s best to come here for an aperitif and then go for dinner elsewhere.
To contact: cafearabe.com
Price:%s: £
Gueliz
Petanque Social Club
Built in 1912, the Gueliz neighborhood has a modernist heart and plenty of beautiful Art Deco architecture that is increasingly appreciated. Yet many buildings were lost to the march of progress, so Kamal Laftimi’s rescue of the almost perfectly preserved 1930s petanque club is an act of social heroism. He commissioned Ibiza-based architecture studio Diego & Alexeja to revitalize the place, filling it with vintage finds and furniture, creating tables from old blinds and filling the library with old books and nostalgic photos of the original petanque team. Best of all is the huge garden, shaded by huge rubber trees and hung with huge wicker lanterns. Come for a great brunch on the weekends or a Sahara spritz on summer evenings, then stay for Central Moroccan tasting plates (including great gourmet pizza) and, of course, a good-natured game of boule.
To contact: pscmarrakech.com
Price:%s: ££
Le Palace
The club-style lounge on the lower level of Le Palace Restaurant is reminiscent of a 1920s speakeasy. Dim lighting, lavish, inlaid mahogany walls and chandeliers set the scene for adult beverages and after-dinner treats. Most patrons start the evening at the fine French restaurant, working their way through plates of tiger prawns and foie gras before heading downstairs for nightcaps and cigars to loud music of international DJ tracks. The wine menu showcases some excellent Moroccan wines and is sure to bring a crowd to the party.
To contact: le-palacemarrakech.com
Price:%s: £££
Royal Mansour Bar
For a healthy dose of glamor and a seriously classy cocktail, head to the beautiful bar. Royal Mansur. The massive marble bar takes center stage, framed by mirrored walls delicately etched in rose gold leaf, and overhead, a handcrafted silver ceiling glistens in the dim light. It’s quite dazzling, and the accompanying drinks are equally good: there’s a wine list fit for a Moroccan king (his guests stay here regularly) and expertly mixed cocktails, including a rather smooth Manhattan. For truants looking for a more relaxed atmosphere, head across the courtyard to the Chimney Lounge; here you can sink into the shadows of a cedar-paneled room and listen to the resident pianist.
To contact: royalmansour.com
Price:%s: £££
Le Grand Café de la Poste
This colonial Art Deco-style bistro has a long history as the favorite café of the controversial Pasha Glaoui, and still attracts the city’s movers and shakers with its shaded terrace and palm tree-filled 1930s interiors. While the food is a nice mix of French-Moroccan fare, it’s the happy hour from 6-8pm that really draws the crowds. That’s when you pair your chilled glass of Moroccan gris (‘gray’, a very light-coloured rosé) with a parade of delicious appetizers and spicy olives, and catch up on the latest happenings in Marakshi. Smokers congregate on the terrace, so if you want to avoid that, put a window table inside.
To contact: grandcafedelaposte.restaurant
Price:%s: ££
Barometer Marrakesh
The Baromètre is somewhere between a forbidden underground bar and the mad professor’s laboratory filled with pipes and crystal apothecary jars. It’s Marrakech’s most serious cocktail bar, and cocktails (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic) come with unique house-made macerations and bitters and can be customized to your taste; so feel free to discuss your preferences with the bartender. Jimi Hendrix is a comforting summer gin and cucumber blend that you can sip alongside fusion tapas plates. The atmosphere is sexy and sophisticated and the bar staff are friendly and passionate about mixology.
To contact: lebarometer.net
Price:%s: ££
pointing stick
Located off the main street, Pointbar offers a more relaxed atmosphere than most Marakshi bars. Its modest slate-grey entrance and long narrow bar screened with bamboo precedes a large interior verandah with low sofas and ottomans. In the summer, the retractable roof retracts for starlit summer drinking. Although it is primarily a wine bar, it also serves beer and cocktails as well as a Mediterranean menu. The venue fills up on weekends when DJs spin songs and major sporting events and football matches are broadcast live on the bar’s giant screens.
To contact: pointbar-restaurant.com
Price:%s: ££
L’Envers
Watch up-and-coming Moroccan DJs spin electronic tunes on the mezzanine of L’Envers, a narrow bar with filament bulbs and a hipster vibe. The bare walls are covered in local street art and expertly graffitied Arabic calligraphy, and the competitively priced drinks menu goes long with Moroccan and European wines, draft beers and champagne-based cocktails. Dedicated to underground culture, the bar hosts DJs at least four nights a week – you can expect some impressive talent here – and despite the bar’s tight confines, the dancers make some serious shapes.
To contact: 00 212 662 552 478; facebook.com/lenversmarrakech
Price:%s: £
How do we choose
Every bar, venue or experience on this curated list has been tried and tested by our visiting destination expert to give you the insider’s perspective. From casual pubs to exquisite cocktail bars, we cover a range of budgets and styles to best suit every type of traveller, and consider service, drinks, atmosphere and price in our recommendations. We update this list regularly to keep up with the latest openings and provide up-to-date recommendations.