Detailed Gluten-Free Restaurant Card — Morocco

Beyond the couscous

Moroccan cuisine has many naturally gluten-free anchors — grilled meats, olives, dates, salade marocaine, mint tea — and tagines can work once I confirm no flour thickener and skip the bread. The challenges: couscous is the national dish (especially on Fridays), bread arrives at every meal and doubles as the utensil, and pastry shops are wall-to-wall wheat. Marrakech, Casablanca, and Rabat have some gluten-free-aware cafes catering to expats.

What’s on the card

• An explanation of celiac disease in Arabic, written with Darija phrasing locals actually use
• What I can’t eat and where gluten hides: harira (the everyday soup contains vermicelli or flour), tagine sauces sometimes thickened with flour, and bread used as the utensil at every meal
• What’s usually workable: mechoui and kefta (verified without breadcrumbs), olives, dates, and salade marocaine
• The kitchen questions in Darija — including “Is the tagine thickened with flour?” and a polite request to keep bread off the table

What’s in the travel companion (page 2)

• How I choose where to eat: riads and tourist hotels used to dietary requests, Western-style restaurants in Casablanca and Rabat, and the phrase “hada bla qameh?” (is this without wheat?)
• Six reliable orders, shopping notes (Schär and imports at larger Carrefour and Marjane stores), and where options cluster — Gueliz in Marrakech, Essaouira for grilled seafood
• If you get glutened: pharmacies (pharmacie / صيدلية) speak French and Arabic; emergency numbers are 15 for ambulance and 19 for police

The honest certification picture

Gluten-free certification is rare in Morocco. “Bla gluten” (بلا گلوتين) is an understood phrase, not an official label — so the card does the explaining, and naturally gluten-free dishes do the heavy lifting.

Format

Instant download. Two-page PDF — print it or show it on your phone.

This card helps communicate your dietary needs. It does not guarantee a gluten-free meal or eliminate cross-contact risk. Always use your judgment, and when in doubt, do not eat. Not medical advice.