Le Patio — Restaurant in Essaouira

Tonight, on the third night of our honeymoon, my husband and I enjoyed a great dinner here. The food was delicious, wine was good, and there was really enjoyable live music. But when it came time to pay the bill, the woman at the front of the restaurant (not sure if she was the owner or what) put a damper on our evening. After running my card and waiting a few seconds, she turned the card over in her hand saying "I don't know this credit card." The card was a capital one venture visa card, specifically designed for international travel, and I pointed out that it was a standard visa card. I had just used it earlier in the day, so I knew it was working fine. Even so, she said the machine didn't like it and asked for another card. I was confused, but offered my Mastercard instead. Without even running it she said "I don't know this card either." Again confused I explained, "it's a Mastercard?" She smirked and shook her head and ran the card saying something to the effect of "we'll see." At this point, she seemed to pretty obviously be implying that we were trying to use a fake card or skip out on the bill. Miraculously (for her) the card went through, but I'm pretty sure she ran it for the total of the bill, neglecting to include the tip we had specified. I hope this was a language-barrier misunderstanding, because everything else about the restaurant was great. It was really a shame to end our night on such an...

Nice Seafood, Grumpy Service. Beautiful room with candles and live music. The fresh fish was nicely prepared, but not special. The service was poor, once served I never saw the server again. The server brought me the wrong wine and then became very grumpy when I asked to be charge for the one I ordered. They say they take credit cards but when you go to pay the claim the machine is not working, so cash only. There are heaps of restaurants here, most with...

Great location.

The atmosphere is authentic und very romantic. The starters and the dessert were okay, but the main courses were extraordinarilly delicious. We had the vegetarian Tajine and the lamb shoulder in honey-sauce. The wine (vin gris, Domaine de Sahari) was really nice too. At a certain point we got visited by a nice and clean cat who just lied next to me and purred. She didn't even want to eat.

We recommend this restaurant. Tank you for the...