Nestled within a series of riads at the heart of Marrakech’s historic medina, La Maison Arabe is a blissful time capsule infused with the colours and culture of North Africa.
Finding La Maison Arabe isn’t that easy, and that’s part of its charm.
Hidden down a narrow alleyway flanked by terracotta-hued walls, the entrance to this intimate little retreat is more like that of a private home than a luxury hotel. Morocco’s first riad hotel, La Maison Arabe whisks travellers away to the country’s imperial past, complete with Moorish architecture, shaded courtyards, intricate tadelakt walls, carpets in vibrant colours and rooms – just 45 of them – framed with painted, vaulted cedar ceilings.
Over the past 70-odd years, the property has grown organically, adding on neighbouring riads piece by piece while still retaining the authenticity and intimacy for which the multi-award-winning hotel has become famous among the well-travelled.
After checking in, we climb the short staircase to our Standard Suite, which features a Juliette balcony overlooking the central courtyard’s swimming pool. Beyond the king-size bed and the working fireplace (for those frostier evenings) is a bathroom in Moroccan marble and granite with a bathtub that’s heavenly after a day spent exploring the medina. The floors are dressed in plush Moroccan carpets set with the intricate designs of the country’s most prominent tribes.
While its location makes it very convenient for exploring the city’s oldest quarter, what really draws travellers to La Maison Arabe is its passion for food. This shouldn’t come as a surprise; the property traces its origins to 1946, when it was opened by Hélène Sébillon-Larochette and her daughter Suzy (who found themselves stranded in the city during WWII) as the city’s first restaurant catering to foreigners, with the blessing of the chief of the Glaoua tribe of the high Atlas Mountains no less. Back then, it regularly welcomed the likes of Hemingway and Churchill.
In the 1990s, new owner Roman noble Fabrizio Ruspoli opened the clutch of buildings as the city’s first riad hotel, starting a whole new chapter in its storied past, but throughout, it has maintained its culinary credentials, both through its restaurants and through its adjacent cooking school, the most popular in the country.
While you can enjoy leisurely breakfasts at La Restaurant, served in the flower-lined courtyard garden (look out for the traditional msemmen flatbreads cooked on a grill poolside), and elegant evening affairs at the lantern-lit Les Trois Saveurs, which serves a sophisticated menu of French, Moroccan and Asian dishes (there’s also a fascinating piano bar that Hemingway would have loved), most guests opt to add on classes at the hotel’s cooking class, which welcomes both in-house and non-hotel guests alike on a series of classes that range from a couple of hours to a full week.
We join the simplest class, which is introduced by manager Hasna as she serves traditional mint tea and explains the different cultural influences – French, Berber and Arabic – that make up Moroccan cuisine.
Then it’s off to the classroom, where Fathia, one of the school’s most experienced dadas or cooking teachers, leads a fascinating introduction to Moroccan cuisine. The school is thoroughly modern – there are closed-circuit cameras and television screens at each station so you can always keep up with the next step in dish preparation and, at intervals, Fathia steps down from her raised show kitchen to offer words of praise and encouragement followed by a zaghārīt, a sing-song ululation performed by Moroccan women to honour special guests.
“You should box the dough,” she cries from her culinary pulpit as we prepare tigrifine bread, “like Mohammed Ali!”
Once we finish, the whole class sits down to eat its creations – in our case, chicken tagine with preserved lemon and olives, and a zesty chickpea salad. It’s a captivating and interactive way to soak up the city’s rich culture, meet the people who call it home and sate another day’s appetite in the process.
