Petra's dining options are limited to Wadi Musa town and the restaurants inside the archaeological site. This is not a culinary destination — but the Jordanian food available is honest, affordable, and genuinely satisfying after a day of hiking ancient ruins. Mansaf, hummus, and grilled meats dominate the menus, with Bedouin tea providing fuel throughout the day.
Must-Try Dishes
1. Mansaf — JOD 5-8
Jordan's national dish is essential in Petra. Lamb on rice with jameed sauce, pine nuts, and almonds. Al Saraya and Al Wadi restaurants in Wadi Musa serve generous portions (JOD 5-8). The jameed (fermented yogurt) sauce is tangier in southern Jordan than Amman.
2. Bedouin Tea (Sage & Tea) — JOD 1-2
Tea brewed with fresh sage (maramiya) over charcoal — the Bedouin hospitality ritual. Available inside Petra at Bedouin stalls (JOD 1-2) and free when offered by locals. The combination of strong tea, sage, and extreme sugar is surprisingly refreshing in the desert heat.
3. Zarb (Bedouin Underground BBQ) — JOD 10-15
Meat and vegetables slow-cooked in an underground sand oven — the Bedouin version of Omani shuwa. Available at Bedouin camps and some Wadi Musa restaurants (JOD 10-15/person). Often part of an overnight desert camping experience.
4. Hummus & Falafel — JOD 2-5
Standard Levantine fare — creamy hummus, crispy falafel, fresh flatbread, and pickled vegetables. Available at every restaurant for JOD 2-5. The breakfast version with fuul (fava beans) is the ideal fuel before a Petra hiking day.
5. Magloubeh — JOD 4-7
Upside-down rice pot with chicken and fried eggplant — the dramatic reveal when the pot is flipped is a Jordanian dining moment. JOD 4-7 at Wadi Musa restaurants. Ask for it in advance — many restaurants make it to order.
6. Fresh Juice — JOD 1-2
Wadi Musa has juice stands serving fresh pomegranate, orange, and carrot juice (JOD 1-2). Essential hydration after a day in Petra. The pomegranate juice is spectacular — Jordan's pomegranates are among the world's best.
Where to Eat
Wadi Musa — Tourist Restaurants
Al Saraya for Jordanian food and views (JOD 5-12). My Mom's Recipe for home-style cooking (JOD 4-8). Al Wadi Restaurant for reliable mezze and grills (JOD 5-10). Most are within walking distance of hotels.
Petra Guest House — Cave Bar
The bar inside a 2,000-year-old Nabataean rock-cut cave is Petra's most unique dining experience (JOD 5-8 for drinks, JOD 8-15 for food). The atmosphere is worth the premium — drinking a Jordanian beer inside an ancient tomb is memorable.
Inside Petra — Bedouin Stalls
Bedouin-run tea and snack stalls appear throughout the site. Mint tea (JOD 1-2), small sandwiches (JOD 2-3), and cold drinks. The stall near the Monastery viewpoint has the best location. Support these small vendors — they maintain traditional presence inside the site.
Dining Tips for Petra
The best food in any city comes from specialists — restaurants and stalls that have perfected a single dish over years or decades. The cramped stall with the longest queue of locals invariably serves better food than the spacious restaurant with the bilingual menu and zero customers. Follow the crowds, eat what locals eat, and budget for multiple small meals rather than one large dinner.
Street food is safe when the vendor is busy — high customer turnover means food is cooked fresh and doesn't sit at dangerous temperatures. Avoid pre-cooked items that have been sitting under heat lamps for hours. Steaming, sizzling, and smoking are signs of freshly prepared food. Morning markets and evening food stalls typically offer the freshest options.
Local markets are the most affordable and authentic eating experience in any Asian city. Visit the main market early in the morning when vendors set up — the energy, the colors, and the breakfast food reveal the city's character more effectively than any museum or monument. Budget 60-90 minutes for a market visit including breakfast.
Dietary restrictions and allergies can be communicated with a few prepared phrases in the local language. Download Google Translate's offline language pack before your trip. Most Asian food cultures are accommodating of preferences when communicated clearly. Vegetarian options are available nearly everywhere, though the definition varies — fish sauce and shrimp paste appear in many 'vegetarian' Southeast Asian dishes.
Sweet Treats & Desserts Near Petra
Jordan's dessert culture is rich with syrup-soaked pastries, milk-based sweets, and fruit confections that have been refined across centuries of Ottoman, Levantine, and Bedouin influence. Around Petra and Wadi Musa, these sweets provide the perfect energy boost between hikes — and a few local favorites are genuinely not to be missed.
Kunafeh is Jordan's most beloved dessert and Wadi Musa has reliable versions. The dish is a layer of shredded wheat pastry (kataifi) pressed over molten white cheese, baked until golden, then doused in orange-blossom sugar syrup and scattered with crushed pistachios. It is simultaneously crispy, gooey, sweet, and faintly salty — one of the Arab world's great culinary creations. The small pastry shops on the main street in Wadi Musa sell it freshly made for JOD 1.5-3 per portion, best eaten hot straight from the tray.
Luqaimat (fried dough balls with date syrup) appear at several stalls and small cafes in Wadi Musa, usually sold by the plate for JOD 2-3. The Bedouin version, cooked over open fire in desert camps, is thicker and denser than the city variety. If you're staying overnight for the Petra by Night experience, ask your camp to prepare them — they are a natural campfire dessert.
Halaweh (sesame and honey paste) and murabba (fruit preserves) are sold in the small grocery shops near the Petra Visitor Center. Local producers make fig, grape, and pomegranate varieties that make excellent and compact souvenirs. A jar costs JOD 3-5 and survives the journey home easily. The pomegranate molasses from southern Jordan has a depth of flavor that imported versions can't match.
Date confections are everywhere — stuffed with almonds, walnuts, or pistachios, rolled in coconut or dipped in chocolate. The dates sold at the Wadi Musa market (JOD 3-6/kg for Medjool variety) are among Jordan's finest — large, soft, and intensely sweet. Buy a bag before entering Petra: they provide sustained energy during long hikes and cost a fraction of the tourist-priced snacks sold inside the site.
The Basin Restaurant inside Petra serves basbousa (semolina cake soaked in syrup, JOD 2-3) and baklava on its dessert menu — a reasonable quality sweet after the buffet lunch if you need a sugar hit before tackling the Monastery climb.
Planning Your Food Exploration
The most rewarding food experiences come from planning meals around the local eating schedule rather than forcing your own rhythm onto a foreign city. Most Asian cities eat early — breakfast stalls open at dawn and close by 9 AM, lunch service peaks at noon and ends by 2 PM, and dinner starts at 5-6 PM. Night markets and street food stalls offer the best evening options, typically running from 6 PM until 10 PM or later.
Budget allocation matters. Spend 30-40% of your food budget on one memorable meal — a signature local restaurant, a cooking class, or a fresh seafood dinner. Allocate the rest to street food, markets, and casual local restaurants where the authentic flavors live. This strategy ensures you taste both the refined and the everyday versions of the local cuisine without breaking the bank.
Photography etiquette at food stalls and small restaurants varies by culture. In most of Asia, photographing your food is completely normal and even expected. Photographing the cook or the stall itself — ask first with a smile and gesture. Most vendors are flattered; a few prefer not to be photographed. In sit-down restaurants, photograph freely but be discreet about photographing other diners.
Food allergies and dietary restrictions require preparation. Write your restrictions in the local language (Google Translate helps) and show the note at each restaurant. Common allergens like peanuts, shellfish, and gluten appear in unexpected places — soy sauce contains wheat, fish sauce is in many Thai and Vietnamese dishes, and peanuts appear in Indonesian, Malaysian, and Chinese cooking. Communicate clearly and ask about ingredients rather than assuming from the menu description.
The single best food investment in any Asian city is a cooking class. For 5-50, you'll visit a local market, learn 4-6 dishes hands-on, and gain techniques that let you recreate the flavors at home. The market tour alone — learning to identify local herbs, spices, and produce — transforms your understanding of the cuisine for every subsequent meal during your trip.
