Babbouche

Babbouche is a stall with a cauldron on it. Small land snails are purged, cleaned and simmered for hours in water with a bundle of aromatics that varies by seller but typically runs to a dozen or more - thyme, aniseed, liquorice root, mint, gum arabic, orange peel, wormwood, pepper, bitter orange - and served in a small bowl with a pin to hook the meat out and the broth to drink afterwards, which is the part regulars say matters. The broth is claimed to be good for digestion and for fever, which is folk medicine rather than anything to act on. On the Jemaa el-Fna the babbouche stalls are among the busiest in the evening and cost almost nothing. It is a genuinely traditional Moroccan street food rather than a novelty for visitors, and the crowd around the stalls is local.

What you actually see

• A cauldron of aromatics - a dozen or more herbs and spices in the broth.
• A pin and a bowl - the meat hooked out and the broth drunk afterwards.
• The broth as the point - what regulars come for as much as the snails.
• A local crowd - a Moroccan street food, not a novelty stall.

When to go

October to April, in the evening. Half an hour.

Honest expectations

The digestive claims are folk medicine, not medical advice. Stall hygiene varies - choose one with turnover. Snails are an allergen risk for some shellfish-sensitive people. The texture puts visitors off more than the taste does.

Nearby

The Jemaa el-Fna food stalls in Marrakech; every medina has its own.