Panisse is the Marseillais chickpea-flour fritter, a thick batter set cold then sliced and deep-fried until crisp outside and creamy within, served in a paper cone with sea salt and pepper.
Panisse arrived in Marseille with the Italian and Ligurian dockworkers from Genoa across the 19th century, the cheap chickpea-flour street snack of the workers' lunch. Chez Magali at the L'Estaque port has fried panisse since 1947 in the family kiosk, and the dish has stayed a working-class fast food eaten standing in a paper cone with a glass of pastis. The Marche des Capucins counters fry them all day as quick lunch.
2 editor picks for Panisse in Marseille, ranked by editorial score. All Marseille signature dishes · Panisse across every city.
Chez Magali ★ 4.5
42 Plage de l'Estaque, 13016 Marseille
Chez Magali on the L'Estaque port in Marseille's 16e has fried chichis and panisses since 1947, the Italian-imported chichis fregis recipe still cooked the old way in paper cones.
Marche des Capucins counter food ★ 4.2
Rue du Marche des Capucins, 13001 Marseille
Marche des Capucins in Marseille's 1er Noailles runs all day with halal butchers, Tunisian pastries and counter-food stalls, cheapest fresh fast lunch in the centre of the city.