‘We continuously take into consideration meals’: a chef’s tour of Tunis

The solar is bouncing off whitewashed homes within the bohemian Tunis seaside suburb of La Marsa. It’s Friday lunchtime and I’m ready for Malek Labidi at a wise cafe referred to as Boulevard des Capucines. The frenzy is constructing, everybody scurrying round clutching paper-wrapped sandwiches packed filled with meat, eggs and fiery harissa. These transportable meals are offered out of hole-in-the-wall institutions and eaten on the go – a sensible possibility in a metropolis the place individuals are so usually in a rush.

When Malek arrives, she is greeted by virtually everybody within the cafe. A Tunisian chef who skilled on the Institut Paul Bocuse in Paris and reduce her tooth with Alain Ducasse earlier than returning house, Malek not too long ago launched her first prepare dinner guide, La Table du Nord. Centered on preserving the culinary tradition of north Tunisia, it has been lauded for placing the nation’s meals scene on the map. (It’s out there in French solely, however see here for a style of her recipes.) That is notably necessary given the tourist drought that hit after the 2011 revolution and the wave of terrorist attacks within the following years. Guests have began to return although, arriving on ferries from Marseille and Palermo. As we stroll down in direction of the ocean, I catch occasional glimpses of flashy cameras and sunburnt limbs – each silent guarantees to the native financial system.

My culinary training begins at Gourmandise La Marsa, a glittering patisserie with cabinets lined with cocoa-dusted French gateaux, although we overlook these in favour of the native kaak warka. These miniature doughnut-shaped desserts are constructed from wild rose water and a delicate almond paste. Malek tells me that in the course of the Spanish reconquista of Andalucía, individuals would make palm-sized kaak warka so as to stuff them with gold. The desserts have been smuggled into north Africa, permitting refugees to afford land and construct a brand new house right here.

After our snack, we comply with the curling street alongside the seafront. The prosperous La Marsa neighbourhood is dotted with artisanal boutiques, espresso outlets and upmarket eating places, and a skatepark additional alongside the coast. At stylish clothes retailer Lyoum, we uncover gadgets emblazoned with quirky drawings of harissa tubes and brik – the triangular pastries full of runny egg, potatoes, cheese and tuna. Laughing, Malek says, “All of us continuously take into consideration meals, even relating to style.”

We head to beach-front restaurant Le Golfe because the solar dips behind streets lined with timber and enclosed mashrabiya balconies. Le Golfe’s menu is reliant on the Mediterranean and its seasons: in our starter of sea bass carpaccio, the fish is interleaved with skinny slivers of beetroot and orange zest. Subsequent, steamed gilt-head bream is served on crispy aubergines and pistachios. We’re stuffed to the brim by the point we end the risotto of john dory, the sweetness of the fish complimented by the buttery simplicity of the sauce. Shuffling in our chairs, we wash our meal down with cups of boukha – a Tunisian fig-flavoured spirit.

Early the following morning, I make my method to the true stomach of the town’s meals scene – the medina. It’s solely 9am however the market is already a spot of frantic power, with consumers jostling for house between stalls. The medina has a timeworn attraction very completely different from the upmarket boutiques of La Marsa, with sun-drenched leather-based items and bunches of dates swinging overhead.

Following Malek’s directions, I head in direction of slender Rue Jamaa Ez Zitouna. Neon lights emblazon its candy stalls, flickering intermittently above heaps of honey-coated fried dough and date-stuffed pastries. I order a handful of every earlier than heading to Panorama cafe, whose fantastically tiled roof terrace serves bitter Arabic espresso with an ideal view of the Medina, punctuated with the minaret of Zitouna mosque.

After my espresso and pastries, I plunge deeper into the medina. As with most markets, the cheaper trinkets are changed by genuine gadgets the additional in I wander. Conventional handmade crimson felt caps are piled in towers on the Souk de Chechias, and craft store Ed-Dar on Rue Sidi ben Arous is promoting ornate triangular rugs. Amongst {hardware} outlets and brash underwear stalls, I discover cracked picket tables heaped with mounds of spices – strands of saffron, earthy ras el hanout and aromatic cinnamon.

Malek, who’s engaged on her second cookbook, has steered Fondouk El Attarine for lunch. Its lofty doorways give method to a peaceable courtyard restaurant sheltered from the noisy market outdoors, and ravenous from procuring, I order a plate of nwasser au poulet – crispy rooster with pepper-infused sauce and square-shaped Tunisian pasta. Pudding is assida zgougou – pine nut cream topped with crushed pistachio.

The Unesco-protected arty suburb of Sidi Bou Mentioned, recognized for its blue and white facades, is my subsequent cease. I take my time dipping into up to date artwork galleries at Selma Feriani and Galerie Saladin earlier than lounging on the seaside till dinner.

Malek meets me within the night within the seaside suburb of La Goulette, near the port, whose excessive road is lined with seafood eating places. We decide to strive the well-known fried filo parcels at Chez Mohsen, which types itself “Roi du Brik”.

Egg yolk quickly runs out of my brik on to my plate. It is a cardinal sin in accordance with Malek: custom has it that solely ladies who can eat this messy delicacy adeptly are prepared for marriage. As we half methods later that night, I vow to proceed my Tunisian meals tour by way of her recipe guide. Not fairly prepared for marriage but, I additionally make a silent promise to spill the yolk of any prophetic briks that come my approach.