Chez Rachid - Essaouira

Read all the good reviews and thought we'd try it. Had grilled mince meat (kefta) and half of it was undercooked. We paid 200dhs for two small plates of mince (barely 300gr), two small plates of fries, a small coke, and a small bottle of water. Not worth it and didn't leave feeling satisfied (nor full, since I couldn't eat any of the undercooked kefta).

The food was great, the guy himself is a nice person, Rachid is a hard working man, he does everything by himself, he went out to get us fresh fish from the market, all vegetables were fresh….. the building will surely need some refurbishment, but we’re here to talk about food, which is great.

Rachid is probably the most hearty and welcoming chef in Essaouira. He even invited us in the kitchen and showed us how to prepare original moroccan tea before we had our really delicious tagine berbère.

Visited here on a weeknight for dinner with high hopes of great food. We ordered one fish tagine and one chicken tagine. They arrived hot and fresh and looked lovely on the plate. Unfortunately it was one of the most bland dishes I have ever been served. Very little seasoning and everything lacked salt. The fish was slightly undercooked and the chicken was very dry. We were very disappointed. Side note just to beware: we did not order any salad but it was brought out with the bread. I assumed it was complimentary. When I went to pay the bill I found out it was not complimentary. I didn't argue as I'm not the type to eat something and not wanna pay for it, but I felt that it was a bit sneaky. I will say however, that the chef (and owner, I assume) was lovely and hospitable and the food came quickly.

Rachid gave us one of the most unexpectedly beautiful nights of our stay in Essouira. The fish tagine was delicious, couscous amazing and the grilled fish was cooked to perfection. Rachid took time out of his evening to answer our questions about the food and explain the ingredients he uses. Cannot recommend Rachid and his restaurant enough!