We were lucky to catch up with Layla Outita recently and have shared our conversation below.
Layla, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
since early age, I spent a lot of time with my mom and grandmother in the kitchen, joking, cooking, creating recipes and chatting. I can still hear that laughter and joy we shared in our small kitchen in Marrakech, Morocco. Moroccan hospitality is like no other; our house is often full of guests and the only way to welcome people into your home is to break bread with them. We would spend all day baking all types of bread for breakfast that we serve with many sides like honey, amlou ( almond butter with argan oil), butter, olives, olive oil, jams and many more and while the guests are enjoying their food we are back in the kitchen working on lunch. In Morocco, most families eat five times a day; early breakfast, brunch, lunch, snack and dinner and we serve tea with almost every meal; hot mint tea is our national drink and you can’t enter a home without being offered a cup of tea and sweets. Our summer days in The High Atlas were our favorite times of the year, We woke up every morning by the aromas of spiced coffee, fresh bread baking on wood fire coming out of the kitchen and as soon as we are done eating, we run outside to the large, green fields to start our fun adventures. I remember making mud pies by the rivers of Imlil village and the texture in my hands inspired me to become who I’m today. There was something therapeutic about using mud and water to create something small , yet magical in our small minds and since then, I never stopped baking and cooking. When I got married and moved from Virginia to Michigan, my husband encouraged me to start introducing authentic Moroccan cuisine to Detroit Metro area. We hosted pop ups dinners at Revolver, Frame, Urbanrest, Brookyn Street Local, The Arab American Museum, Antietem, Boaba fare and many more beautiful restaurant who believe in me. People felt the love, the dedication and the care I put in my food and until today when I get asked about my culinary background, I tell my guests that i went to the best cooking school; my mom and grandmother school.
Layla, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Layla, and I’m the owner of Taste Of Marrakech. I’m a business entrepreneur, wife, mom and a cancer survivor. I was born and raised in Morocco. I grew up in Marrakech; the city of so many charms and a major economic center. I came from a military family, loving parents and Two brothers, we didn’t have much, but we always had each other. Growing up, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen with my mom and grandmother and the skills and techniques I’ve learned are priceless. I can still hear my grandmother voice in my head trying to teach me how kneed the dough, how to fold msemen ( square shaped pan-fried bread) and how to feel and smell the ingredients before using them. We never used measuring spoons or cups and it was magic how the food turn out perfect each time. Since then, I knew deep in my heart that the kitchen is where my light shines brighter. I used a lot of family recipes, but came up with my own twist to many dishes when I decided to bring the authentic Moroccan cuisine to Detroit. I worked hard to find venues to host my pop ups and when I did, people fell in love. I’m not only bringing a new cuisine to them, but a new culture as well. My pop ups were described by walking into a home in Morocco and that’s exactly my goal. I want people to feel the love as soon as they step into my space. The aromas coming from the food, the smell of cinnamon, cardamom, orange blossom water takes people oceans away. In 2018, I had my daughter Salma who is my sunshine and 11 months later, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was hard trying to navigate motherhood and cancer treatment all at once, and between hospital visits and attending to a baby, I found myself sneaking to my kitchen, grabbing whatever ingredients I got to cook. The smell of spices kept me grounded and focused on my dream and I kept telling myself that cancer is not the end. I still have a lot to give; I want to have more time with my daughter, walk her to school, wait for her gets off the school bus, be there for her to share adventures and dreams, travel the world with her and show her what women can achieve. Cancer is definitely not the end. I want to open my own restaurant, bring people together, break bread with each other, share the same meal and create friendships over dishes I put a lot of love into. Today, I’m grateful to my husband, my daughter and my passion for cooking helping me create a stronger, more resilient and determined woman and the example I want to set for my daughter.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
In 2019, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, a journey that is not easy for anyone, let alone a new mom and and entrepreneur who was still trying to get out there and be noticed. Cancer diagnosis is scary but it never put an end to my dreams and work except in the few harsh days of treatment. I hosted 4 pop ups at Revolver the same weekend I had my chemotherapy and seeing my guests all smiles made everything worthwhile. Cancer for me was a blessing in disguise; I made new friendships, I valued my loved ones more, I respected myself for the hard work I do and I appreciated the small things in life like sharing a meal with someone and building bridges between people. Cancer made me more resilient and focused on my food journey and I’m still serving up the most authentic Moroccan food for my guests with the most genius attitude and love.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
Before hosting my first pop up dinner at Revolver, I reached out to a Dearborn Food Blogger who was thrilled to come out with his wife and try Moroccan cuisine for the first time, Fred was very honest , he told me that he would post on Instagram if the food is good, otherwise, he won’t. I knew then, that I would impress him because I’m very good at what I do and I put all my love and skills into it. At dinner, they came to the kitchen to get some pictures of me and they expressed how much they loved the food. The same night, they posted about my business and their experience and I got a lot of followers. Since then, I try to post very often on social media, sometimes it takes me hours to get all the props I need to take the perfect shot, sometimes, I get friends who are professional photographers to take pictures. day after day, my following start to grow, I’m getting more customers and more doing more pop ups. I do my own marketing now and built my own website because I’m not making enough to pay a marketing agent to do it. I created a Google my business account and I asked some of my previous customers to leave me a review, then finally, a word of mouth is the best
Contact Info:
- Website: www.atasteofmarrakech.com
- Instagram: @tasteofmarrakech16
- Facebook: Taste Of Marrakech
Image Credits
Fred Sareini and Ahmed Badr