What makes for a memorable, meaningful meal out? Sure, taste has a lot to do with it. But, the foodie folk behind the World’s 50 Best Restaurants group also believe eateries that have mastered the exacting “art of hospitality” deserve acclaim.
As such, the group hands out a stand-alone award for this category on both its global and regional lists. Taking over the mantle from Dubai’s Ossiano at this year’s Mena’s 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony on February 3 will be La Grande Table Marocaine in Marrakesh, The National can confirm.
The restaurant at the opulent Royal Mansour Marrakech hotel serves fine-dining Moroccan fare. Think Berber tajine with chestnuts and Atlas black truffle; pigeon pastilla with the aromatic ras el hanout spice; and Zagora Medjool dates with frozen milk mousse and orange blossom water – signature dishes that led it to come in at No 22 on Mena’s 50 Best Restaurants list last year, up from No 27 in 2024.
No matter where on the “best restaurants” part of list it might place this year, the team at La Grande Table Marocaine will take home the plaque for Art of Hospitality 2026 – for harmony of “service, storytelling and cultural authenticity”.
The hotel’s innovative managing director, French hotelier Jean-Claude Messant, believes service should feel natural, precise and deeply human.
It's why a meal at La Grande Table Marocaine starts with traditional Moroccan welcome rituals including milk and dates; hand washing with orange-blossom-scented water; and the ceremonial pouring of tea.
“Soft live music from the oud and lute creates an emotional connection, while the service is rooted in elegance and ceremony, embodied by women in ceremonial caftans and men in refined djellabas,” explains Messant.
“Moroccan hospitality is about warmth, smiles and the pleasure of making others happy. It is also instinctive and deeply rooted in people’s DNA. It is not learnt, it is lived.”
The Mena’s 50 Best Restaurants team evidently agrees. A spokesperson for the group says: “The Art of Hospitality award recognises restaurants that set a benchmark in service and guest care. Rooted in Morocco’s enduring traditions of warmth and ceremony, La Grande Table Marocaine has shaped a service philosophy defined by attention to detail, cultural pride and personal connection.
“From the moment guests arrive, the team orchestrates the experience with considered pacing, refined gestures and a quiet sense of occasion, inviting diners to feel genuinely hosted.
“Moments of cultural insight, from the gracious welcome to the elegant presentation of tea, are woven naturally into the experience, revealing the stories, rituals and subtleties that shape Moroccan hospitality, and adding a sense of depth and discovery to the dining journey.
“Each course is presented with clarity and intention, allowing the team to shape the rhythm of the experience and reinforce service as an expression of respect, pride and generosity.”
La Grande Table Marocaine is helmed by French chef Helene Darroze – she was named Best Female Chef on the World's 50 Best Restaurants list in 2015 – and deputy executive chef Karim Ben Baba from Morocco.
Of the food, Messant says: “Behind creative cuisine lies extensive research – the right produce, careful sourcing and respecting seasonality. True excellence comes from clarity, balance and coherence, rather than overcomplicating dishes.”
He cites as his top three the seafood pastilla, “a contemporary interpretation of traditional pigeon pastilla”; lamb shoulder mechoui, “which the chefs slow-cook for 24 hours, then finished with butter-roasting”; and quail seffa, which features “tender quail nestled in delicately steamed angel hair vermicelli”.
The regional Art of Hospitality Award for the restaurant ties in with the 50 Best group’s global rankings, which deemed Royal Mansour Marrakech the “most welcoming hotel on the planet” in 2024.
Owned by Morocco’s King Mohammed VI, Royal Mansour is known for its private riads, traditional craftsmanship and award-winning restaurants. Last year, Messant launched the pioneering Food Lab, intended as a melting pot of local and global food trends that works to elevate gastronomy for discerning diners in an ever-evolving world. Darroze aside, the hotel’s kitchens are also helmed by Michelin-lauded chefs Yannick Alleno from France and Massimiliano Alajmo from Italy.
As the region at large seeks to attract intrepid travellers, this latest nod for the “elegant and deeply personal” hospitality at La Grande Table Marocaine will ensure the Moroccan hotel stays high up on the bucket list for gastro-tourists visiting the Middle East and North Africa.
