Gite Mentaga

What the French perfectly describe as a Gite! Small group tour from UK ,walking the Afensou valley..Tour bus dropped us aways up the valley and we walked back through fields and riverbed for lunch on the terrace,overlooking this lovely valley.Small pool that some took advantage of. Inside the building are some traditional looking rooms and a hallway.The kitchen is in a separate building and on show ,as you enter the garden,a traditional bread oven. The staff were super friendly. Tagines hot and spicy,bread super fresh and warm.All produce garden to fork.

I'm not prone to writing reviews for Trip Advisor, but given there are no new reviews for this property since 2018 its worth mentioning that we chanced upon this place on-line, looking for a good lunch spot on a Sunday outing from Taroudant. After a phone call to the owner (Mustapha) to confirm they were indeed open, we headed out, about 40 minutes from town in the direction of Imoulass. What a jackpot. The gite has a number of bedrooms which were a bit too simple for our tastes, but a filling lunch was graciously prepared out on their terrace with fabulous views over to the hills and valley. Clean and properly maintained (including clean albeit simple bathrooms, very important!) by Hassan our friendly server. There was a swimming pool to cool off for a dip afterwards. I understand they organize hikes around the region and there's no doubt we'll be back again to explore the region and enjoy a wonderful Moroccan meal at Gite Mentaga. No alcohol, bring cash.

It's a small summer house with a tiny pool (horribly tiled) converted into what locals know as "Le refuge", a place to get some refreshments after a hike. About a dozen tables are scattered around the place, under a pergola, by the pool, on a little platform further along the cliff's edge... Now, the cliff: the "gite" (hike) is perched on a hill overlooking the Mentaga valley, an oasis-like palm-tree extension at the foot of the high Altas. The view is stunning. The food is excellent, if unsurprising: simple mountain dishes for travelers. We got five different "Moroccan salads": grated cucumber with cumin, butter beans, beetroot with mint, mixed vegetables with basil, tomato and onion. Then came the turkey skewers. And finally a chicken tagine (you don't get to choose). If you are driving from Taroudant, don't trust your gps sat-nav. The old road along the river is cut by a dam under construction; the new road on the west side ends at the dam (for now); in the meantime you have to take a winding mountain road (tarmac in good condition) along the east side of the valley, crossing the river just after the potter's village called Ryad (at the end of the village turn right and down).