Every night the storytellers, snake charmers, juice salesmen, tooth pullers, and medicine men of Marrakech's central square are joined by hundreds of chefs serving up traditional Moroccan food.

It's a scene unlike anything else in the world. The seats aren't too comfortable, but the food is great, the price is right (US$2-5 per meal), the staff are friendly, and the atmosphere is unbeatable.

Every foreign tourist in Morocco comes here at one time or another, but it's also immensely popular with Moroccan tourists visiting from other cities. This makes it a great place to make friends with real Moroccans, who are rightly proud of their countries traditions and cuisine and happy to help a foreign visitor find their way around culinary specialties they might not otherwise know about or think to try.

Make sure to start your meal off at one of the tables where you can eat a bowl of harira (a thick soup with lentils, vegetables and noodles) with a wooden spoon for US$0.25. Then move on to sample sausages, couscous, or a tajine (meat and vegetable stew cooked in a distinctive clay pot).