On my recent trip to the United Arab Emirates, I flew Royal Air Maroc’s new Boeing 787 service from Washington Dulles International Airport to Casablanca (CMN) before continuing on to Doha (DOH) and then Dubai (DBX). On the return, Banu Yilmaz and I found ourselves with 12 hours in Casablanca — what to do? Well, part of that answer involved starting a beautiful friendship with Rick’s Café.

While the city perhaps doesn’t live up to the romantic notions in the heads of many, I’m glad I took the layover time to get out of the airport and experience it. From the airport we took the easy and affordable train service into the city center. Departing every hour on the hour, it’s convenient and easily navigable. Just purchase your tickets ahead of time.

After breakfast and a quick glance around the 5-star Mövenpick Hotel Casablanca, we ventured to Hassan II Mosque, the third-largest in the world and a stunning and beautiful piece of architecture.

While one might scoff at the idea of visiting Rick’s Café, the café named after the fictional setting of the movie Casablanca (also the culprit behind the fantasized vision people have of the city), internet reviews on the restaurant were surprisingly positive, and even locals seem aware of the establishment’s reputation.

The setting was intimate but bright, decorated much as you’d expect. A piano waited in the corner for Sam to play it again. The food was delightful. I started with the house cocktail, the Sour Jdid, named for the street on which the café is located, with scotch, red vermouth, sparkling water and lemon. My starter salad of figs and goat cheese was delicious, and the perfect segue into my Moroccan lemon-roasted chicken. Sadly, we had to depart and head back to the airport for our flight before dessert, but that was one gin joint worth walking into.

— Kim Krol, editor in chief