Marrakech
The 12 best spots for unwinding after a day in the souks, from Gueliz wine bars to Hivernage terraces.
$$ Historic 1925 French colonial café-bar on the main square of Gueliz. Original tile floors, ceiling fans, and a terrace that fills with Marrakech's creative and business class from 6pm. The house wine is Moroccan, the croque monsieur is outstanding, and the pace of service is deliberately unhurried. Terrace
$$ Gueliz's most civilised after-work spot occupies a restored 1930s building on Mohammed V with a first-floor terrace overlooking the plane trees. The Moroccan wine list runs to 28 labels, the cheese board is Franco-Moroccan, and the crowd includes architects, lawyers, and NGO workers who come here most evenings before dinner. Terrace
$$ Marrakech's first dedicated natural wine bar opened in a restored Gueliz shopfront. 60 labels by the glass, mostly French and Moroccan, plus a rotating slate of small producers from Spain and Italy. Paired snacks arrive on a slate board. The owner spent 10 years in Lyon before returning. Natural Wine
$$ Named for the wartime prime minister but decorated in mid-century Moroccan style. A grown-up bar for grown-up conversations. Whisky flights from 18 Scotch and Japanese labels, serious cocktails, and food running until midnight. The sound system plays jazz at precisely 62 decibels. Whisky
$$$ The hotel terrace bar most locals keep to themselves. Perched above the Hivernage gardens, this open-air terrace serves properly made cocktails and Moroccan wine from 5pm. The crowd skews business traveller and local professional. The Atlas Mountains are visible on clear days. Terrace
$ The budget pick for after-work drinking in Gueliz. Crowded, loud, and unpretentious in the best possible way. Cold Flag beer is 35 MAD, the peanuts bowl arrives unrequested, and the football is always on. A good place to find out what Marrakech actually thinks. Budget
$$$ Sleek hotel bar at the Hivernage Hotel with a sun terrace that works beautifully until 8pm. The cocktail program includes genuinely creative Moroccan-inflected drinks. Order the Atlas Sour: local gin, apple, fresh ginger, and a salted rim made with black salt from Essaouira. Cocktails
$$ Exactly what the name suggests: a modern Gueliz bar decorated in warm neon signage with a playlist that runs from Moroccan hip-hop to French electronic. The vibe is young professional, the drinks are well-made if conventional, and it stays lively until 2am on weekdays. Modern
$$ The lobby bar of the Atlas Asni on Mohammed V is significantly better than its location suggests. Renovated in 2022, it now features a proper cocktail bar, local Moroccan spirits, and a terrace that works for after-work drinks without feeling too corporate. Staff speak excellent English and French. Cocktails
$$ Half English-language bookshop, half wine bar, and entirely excellent. The after-work crowd here reads, debates, and drinks Moroccan rosé. Wifi, board games, and an owner who knows every customer's name. Light food runs until 9pm. Opens daily from 4pm. Books
$$ A French-owned zinc-bar-style venue on a side street off the Gueliz main drag. Standing room at the bar, tables for two, and a rotating menu of open sandwiches paired with whatever wine the owner's brother shipped from Bordeaux that week. Simple, honest, and exactly what the category demands. French
$$$ The rooftop terrace bar of Riad Yasmine opens to non-guests for evening drinks from 5pm. The terrace looks across a sea of orange clay rooftops toward the Atlas, and on winter evenings the mountains glow pink at sunset. Champagne and cocktails only at the bar. Rooftop
Le Loft has worked a Parisian-brasserie room in central Gueliz since 2012, pouring aperitifs and cocktails alongside bistro plates such as egg cocotte with foie gras. The kitchen and bar run noon to midnight. French Brasserie
Le Perroquet works a bar and restaurant on Avenue Hassan II in Hivernage, mixing Moroccan plates and contemporary tapas with cocktails until 2am. Reviewers single out the service and the relaxed room. Bar and Tapas
Le Zellige keeps a small, low-lit tapas bar in Gueliz, with revisited plates of salmon, shrimp and charcuterie matched to wine and background music. It opens daily from early evening until 1am. Tapas Bar
Le Zinc runs one of Gueliz's busiest lunchtime bistros, a small restaurant and wine bar with a modern, friendly room near the district's galleries. Bistro and Wine
Gueliz's most civilised after-work spot occupies a restored 1930s building on Mohammed V with a first-floor terrace overlooking the plane trees. The Moroccan wine list runs to 28 labels, the cheese board is Franco-Moroccan, and the crowd includes architects, lawyers, and NGO workers who come here most evenings before dinner.
Marrakech's first dedicated natural wine bar opened in a restored Gueliz shopfront. 60 labels by the glass, mostly French and Moroccan, plus a rotating slate of small producers from Spain and Italy. Paired snacks arrive on a slate board. The owner spent 10 years in Lyon before returning.
Named for the wartime prime minister but decorated in mid-century Moroccan style. A grown-up bar for grown-up conversations. Whisky flights from 18 Scotch and Japanese labels, serious cocktails, and food running until midnight. The sound system plays jazz at precisely 62 decibels.
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