Where do you eat in Tangier?

Tangier is one of my favourite food cities precisely because it doesn't taste like anywhere else in Morocco. As the historic gateway between Africa and Europe — and a former International Zone where Spanish, French and a dozen other cultures mingled — its cooking is a genuine crossroads. You'll find classic Moroccan tagines and couscous, but also strong Spanish influence (tapas, fried fish, paella-ish rice), Mediterranean flavours, and a cosmopolitan café culture that the city wears like a second skin. Eating in Tangier feels worldly and a little bohemian.

For where to go, the medina and its two famous squares are the obvious heart. The Petit Socco and Grand Socco are surrounded by cafés and small restaurants, perfect for people-watching over mint tea or a plate of grilled fish, and the medina lanes hide atmospheric little eateries and grills. Tangier's café tradition is legendary — this is the city of writers and artists, and sitting in a historic café nursing a coffee is half the experience (the Café Hafa, perched above the sea, is the storied one, with its terraces of cheap tea and a sweeping view of the strait). Seafood is a must here: head toward the port, the fish market and the Mediterranean-facing restaurants for the catch of the day, simply grilled or fried.

Because of the Spanish thread, Tangier is a great town for grazing tapas-style and for fried-fish suppers — pescado frito done the Andalusian way turns up alongside Moroccan chermoula-marinated grills. The city's beaches and the newer marina area have a string of restaurants where you can eat seafood with a sea breeze and a view across to Spain on a clear day. For traditional Moroccan, the medina and a few well-known restaurant-riads do proper tagines, pastilla and couscous in handsome surroundings.

Honest guidance: Tangier has cleaned up enormously in recent years and the food scene has grown with it, but it's still a port city, so use a little judgement with the most aggressively touristy spots near the squares and agree prices where things aren't marked. The reward for exploring a bit is real — the mix of cultures means more variety on your plate here than almost anywhere in the country. Come hungry, embrace the café-sitting, and treat the strait-side seafood and the literary cafés as essential, not optional.