Not just anyone can be from Marseille. If you haven’t passed the test of fire by tasting each of these 11 typical specialties at least once in your life, you’re not legally entitled to the Marseilles origin. To get it, we’ve put together a list of must-try dishes and (above all) where to find them.
1. La Bouillabaisse
Marseille bouillabaisse is more than just a fish soup, it’s a religion! An explosion of flavors and a tradition that goes back centuries. While the original recipe was to boil fish and dip bread in it, it has since evolved into a number of variations.
📍ChezFonfon – 140 rue du Vallon des Auffes – Marseille 7th arrondissement
2. Feet and packages
Legend has it that the recipe for “pieds et paquets” (or “pieds-paquets”) comes from the creation of the Phocaean city. It dates back 2,600 years! But there’s no need to go back that far: this Marseilles dish actually dates back to the 19th century, and is the work of Louis Ginouvès. Lamb flaps stuffed with flesh and herbs from Provence, lamb’s feet simmered in a tomato sauce, with white wine… a real treat!
📍ChezNous – 22 Place Notre Dame du Mont – Marseille 6e
3. The great Provençal aioli
This is not mayonnaise! Thicker and full of garlic (as the name suggests), the great Provençal aioli is another specialty of the Phocaean city! Summer or winter, aioli is usually accompanied by poached cod and raw or cooked spring vegetables!
📍AuCoeur du Panier – 18, Rue du Panier – Marseille 2e
4. Bottarga
This speciality comes to us from Martigues! Nicknamed “Mediterranean caviar“, its name is originally derived from the Provençal word “boutarguo”. Made from salted and dried mullet or mullet roe, this southern delicacy is a highly sought-after product, and therefore somewhat expensive. Grated over pasta or on toast with a splash of lemon juice, bottarga (or boutarga) is either loved or loathed!
📍ChezBoutargue Meyer – 90, Rue d’Italie – Marseille 6e
5. Tapenade and anchovy paste
One is made with black or green olives, the other with anchovies! Tapenade and anchoïade – which belong to the family of spreads – are must-haves for the Phocaean aperitif. While both can be found in supermarkets, we much prefer to buy them in small local grocery stores!
📍 L’Épicerie L’Idéale – 11, Rue d’Aubagne – Marseille 1e
6. La Daube provençale
A speciality of the region, daube provençale is a meat stew (beef or mutton) marinated in a local red (or white) wine! Traditionally, it is stewed by the fire in a Provençal earthenware daubière.
📍 Les buffets du Vieux-Port – 158, Quai du Port – Marseille 2e
7. Les Panisses
If the Belgians have their frites, the people of Marseille (and Nice) have their panisses panisses! This chickpea-based specialty, so dear to Provence, originated in Liguria. It can be eaten before a meal or by the dozen in the barracks of Estaque-plage. And to be enjoyed on the spot, mind you!
📍 At l’Estaque, in the shacks lining the harbor
8. Le chichi frégi
We remain in the same geographical area. To disguster son Chichi Frégindre to the extreme north-west of Marseille. Located in the 16th arrondissement, the Estaque district jealously guards the best addresses for chichis frégis. These long fritters, scented with orange blossom, fried in oil and covered in sugar, are sure to make anyone’s mouth water.
📍ChezMagali, à l’Estaque plage
9. The shuttles
To taste this delicious specialty at orange blossom (which is not only eaten at Candlemas), there’s only one place we can recommend. This is Marseille’s oldest bakery, founded by Monsieur Aveyrous, who invented the shuttle in 1781! Handed down from generation to generation, the secret of the authentic Four des Navettes recipe has remained the same for over two centuries.
📍136Rue Sainte – Marseille 7e
10. Pastis
We finish with a drink. And not the least. The Bretons have their cider, the Bordelais their lillet, and the Marseillais their pastis! Flavored with aniseed and licorice, this beverage typical of the Phocaean city must have an alcoholic strength of 45% to be entitled to the appellation “pastis de Marseille” ! Tell us in comments how you drink your pastis!
📍AuMx Bar – Les Docks, 10 Place de la Joliette – Marseille 7e
11. La Marseillotte
Created in 1994 by the couple Monique and Jean-Marie Fouque, Marseillotte comes – as its name suggests – from Marseille. Sweet chocolate wrapped in a bright blue wrapper and sold in boxes bearing the image of the Good Mother, it doesn’t get much more typical than this. But what’s so Marseillais about this delicacy? Beneath its dark cocoa robe, flavors of almond, honey, orange peel and, above all, aniseed, typical of the region. A delight for yourself or as a gift.
📍 Torréfaction Noailles – 56 La Canebière – Marseille 1e