L’Etoile du Plazza is located a bit out of the way from the Casablanca business district. (You’ll definitely want to take a taxi here after dark – they are easily hailed from the streets.) But once you get there, you’ll start to see why people come.

We arrived to a dark exterior with a few bouncers standing outside. Inside, a lady led us through a hallway where it opened onto a large room replete with traditional Moroccan artwork. Large paintings decorate the room and the bar is adorned with pink and purple lights, making the people at the bar look like silhouettes.

We happened to get front row seats by the small stage and listened to the music acts throughout the night. There are also large plush couches throughout the interior, but those seemed to be reserved for smaller groups — they sure looked comfortable though. After a few minutes of staring at a trippy picture of a Berber musician playing guitar and listening to music, we decided to order our meal.

The menu consists of mostly Moroccan dishes and standard items like beef, fish, pasta and salads. However, being being more of a lounge than a restaurant, they also specialize in tapas. The drink selection is more extensive than the menu and includes dozens of whines, whiskeys, vodkas, Champagnes, and bottle service.

Not being sure what to order, we went with a prix fixe selection of six different tapas to share. Our dish came with chicken kebabs, sardines, potatoes that were similar to home fries, cream cheese-filled egg rolls, calamari, and croquettes filled with chicken. The kebabs were the best part and were extra crispy and bursting with flavor. However the sardines were super fishy, and the calamari came out a bit rubbery. The cream cheese egg rolls were a bit on the soggy side. Overall, I wasn’t too impressed with the food but the vibe was fantastic.

So while the food isn’t much to write home about, that’s was okay with us — most people seemed to be there just to hang out and relax anyway. Music usually starts around 9 p.m. and continues very late into the night. While we were there, two local acts were alternating short 20-minute sets. The first was a local group playing traditional Moroccan music and singing. The other was two Berber musicians, and they really set the mood. One musician was clapping and swinging a rope around his head while walking around the restaurant, and many of the women tried to copy him, but it was more like headbanging at a metal concert.

If you’re looking to listen to great Moroccan music that you can party the night away to and don’t need haute cuisine, L’etoile du Plazza is a place for a fun-filled night.