There are several legendary cafes in Tangier in the old Medina and even in the city center. Café Baba, Café Central, Café Maquina, etc., but Café Hafa remains by far the most legendary. For a century, the Hafa café has welcomed dreamers, writers with fertile imaginations, sailors coming to rest, workers after a hard day.
Opened in 1921, the legendary Café Hafa is one of the oldest and busiest cafés of the city of Tangier. This peaceful place rises on a cliff with an indescribably wonderful atmosphere. Built on the rocks of the Marshan Gorge, this cafe of undeniable charm seems to float on the waters of the Strait. Its cosmopolitan atmosphere has seduced bohemians and travellers from the four corners of the world for decades, and has inspired many writers and artists such as; Jean Genet, Paul Bowles Mohamed Mrabet, Luis Eduardo …
The café symbolizes the most international, bohemian and libertarian Tangier. It celebrated its centenary in 2021, and personalities as illustrious as the Rolling Stones have sat at its tables. Indeed, there was a time when Café Hafa acted as a powerful magnet for bohemian and creative personalities from around the world. If Café Hafa has lost somewhat of its countercultural vocation, it nevertheless remains a reference for any traveler curious to know Tangier. However, it is not a luxurious place. It is a traditional building with truly breathtaking views. In addition to a simple interior space, with tiled tables and terracotta flower pots, the café offers a large terrace arranged on several levels, overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar.
Café Hafa in Tangier celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2021.. The writer Juan Goytisolo, who spent long periods in Tangier, immortalized the Café in his book “Count Julian (Reivindicación del conde don Julián, 1970)” as well as during a famous television program. Other illustrious clients include the Rolling Stones, the French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy and the Chilean painter Claudio Bravo. Former French Culture Minister Jack Lang also bought an old house next to Hafa Café.
The singer-songwriter Luis Eduardo Aute dedicated a beautiful song to this symbol of Tangier, entitled “Hafa Café”, at the end of one of his stays in the city. This song, which is part of his 1992 album “Slowly”, recreates the atmosphere of this emblematic place in Tangier, referencing Paul Bowles’ best-known novel “The Sheltering Sky”. Among the host of writers who have visited Hafa are Jean Genet (1910-1986), Jack Kerouac (1922-1969), Tennessee Williams (1911-1983), Truman Capote (1924-1984) and Allen Ginsberg (1926-1997). ).
Today, there is not much left of the bohemian and intellectual café that marked its era. However, many travellers still make it a point of honor to visit the place, because of its unique history.
Even if intellectuals and bohemians no longer stop at Café Hafa, it remains an essential icon of Tangier, perhaps because it still overlooks the sea, at this precise place where the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Moreover, it continues to welcome a diverse audience made up of young locals, table game enthusiasts, and international travelers from all over the world.
Café Hafa, Marshan, 90000, Tangier, Morocco
