Eating and Shopping in Tunisia

Souvenir shops and outdoor cafes in Sidi Bou Said.

One of the best ways to discover a country (besides looking at buildings and nature) is to see what it has to offer in terms of cuisine and shopping. At least that was my excuse for stuffing myself with food and heading to a different market almost every day. Unless you're really picky with what you eat, Tunisia is a great place to find some delicious local treats. Some of them, such as the various couscous dishes (usually with lamb or fish) might be familiar. Others, such as tajines (similar to an omelet) or brik a l'oeuf (deep-fried pastry filled with meats, cheese or shrimp and a soft-cooked egg) might be new to you and are worth trying if you get the chance, though the latter was a bit too deep-fried for my liking.

Mint tea with pine nuts. The bouquet of jasmine next to it, was sold throughout Sidi Bou Said, but I managed to get one free. Couscous with fish (top right) and appetizers incl. harissa, olives, cucumbers and canned tuna (lower right).

In general there are four types of eateries to choose from: smarter restaurants approved by the tourism industry (which are popular among locals as well), local dining places, small outdoor cafes (usually only serving drinks and occasionally pastries) and snack-bars which can be considered a local version of fast-food, though less unhealthy. And if you don't like any of their foods, you can forget about hiding out in McDonalds or KFC, because none of the Western fast-food chains have made it to Tunisia yet.

A more elegant dining option in Gammarth's 'Le Grand Bleu' with a lovely view of the coast from the terrace (top). One of the snack bars offering sandwiches with your choice of filling and fries (lower left and right).

We tried out all of the above and the snack-bar option (usually involving sandwiches, stuffed with tuna or warm roasted chicken, salad, fries and olives) was great for lunch, while regular restaurants were a good alternative for dinner. In the cafes, the main Tunisian speciality tends to be hot mint tea served with pine nuts. If you're into it, you can order a water pipe (chicha) to go along with it. The most popular soft drink was fresh lemonade (citronnade). What I quickly realized is that Tunisia has a slight obsession with canned tuna. This stuff was served as an appetizer before every meal (along with olives, harissa paste and cucumbers), but could also be found in various other dishes, sandwiches and even crêpes. Speaking of crêpes - as mentioned before, French food has happily been adopted here, so you'll easily find baguettes, croissants and other French treats here. During the two weeks I spent in Tunisia, I actually had more crêpes than I ever had in France. For more foodie fun, we made sure to head to the souks selling spices, vegetables and fish. Tunisians are big on all meats (except pork - for religious reasons), seafood, pastries/sweets (similar to what you'll find in Turkey), dates, olives and the spicy harissa paste (made of peppers, tomatoes, olive oil and salt).

Spices and dried herbs in Sousse's souks.

Local pastries and baguettes on sale in the souk (Sousse).

They also sold live snails, which didn't look too appetizing considering they were actively crawling up a branch (left) and fresh dates (right).

The fish market in Sfax. They even sold small sharks, which I sincerely hope aren't endangered (lower left) and eels (lower right).

While hunting down and trying local foods proved to be quite rewarding, shopping for other stuff was a bit trickier. As mentioned in my last post, many of the souks turned out to be quite touristy. And as I soon realized, the main sources of finding non-food related products were restricted to either these markets, shopping malls filled with slightly tacky local chains I'd never heard of before or small shops that sold sparkly 'prêt-a-porter' and 'haute couture' creations that were a tad too outdated and prom-queen for my liking. So you can imagine my delight, when upon arrival in Tunis, I found out my check-in bag had gone missing. Had I been in a big city with well-known stores or quaint boutiques, I probably would have rejoiced and spent some travel-insurance money in them. But I was in Tunis and by the time my bag showed up a day later, I already had visions of me standing in a crowded souk, haggling with a vendor over the price of neon-colored polyester underwear.

The somewhat touristy market in Tunis, which sold everything from leather goods, fake LV bags and carpets, to football/soccer shirts.

The most commercial part of the Tunis souks, offering cheap sunglasses and counterfeit goods.

Most souks, which can be found within a medina, follow the same layout: the center is occupied by the Great Mosque surrounded by souks in a strict hierarchy. Noble souks selling incense, perfumes or carpets are closest to the mosque, while noisier and smellier souks belonging to blacksmiths or butchers are located towards the edge of the medina. In many cases, such as the souks in Tunis or Monastir, you'll find plenty of souvenir shops in the markets, selling stuffed animals (usually camels) and other junk that's made in China. A lot of the products are overpriced and you'll get a large number of pushy vendors trying to lure you into their shops. The best way to get rid of them is to just ignore them completely. If you do find something you like, you'll need to haggle (start at about a third of the price they give you). There are also state-owned craft shops which sell items at a fixed price if you don't feel like haggling. It's worth coming here just to get an idea of what prices are like before going to a market.

The more noble perfume souks, selling scented pure oils or a specially concocted perfume of your choice. You can even get popular designer perfumes replicated here.

One of the official craft and souvenir shops in Monastir. The replica brand name perfumes fascinated me the most, incl. 'Chanail 5', 'Dakka Noir' and 'K One'.

Tunisia specializes mainly in perfume (particularly in jasmine, rose and geranium scents), ceramics, silver/gold jewelry and brass or copper items. You'll also find plenty of vendors selling traditional clothing items, but most of the above is favored either by tourists or by richer/older locals. The younger generation can be found in the souks buying cheap costume jewelry, fake designer products and mass-produced decor items. I had forgotten bad fakes still existed and I was blown away by the fact that even perfumes were counterfeited. My favorite pseudo-brands were 'J-Star Raw', 'Levie Strausst' and 'Abibas' (the latter was sported by an older lady wearing a headscarf and a black two-striped track suit. Priceless.).

I spent a record 5 seconds in a local shopping mall (top left) filled with local retail stores. Streetsyle in Tunis involves casual gear and the occasional headscarf (above right). More prestigious stores in Sfax and Mahdia (lower left & right). Gotta love the sign of the men's store...

Even though Tunisia didn't strike me as a fashion capital (and it really isn't), it has given the world two big international designers: most notably Azzedine Alaïa who grew up near Monastir, and Max Azria who was born in Sfax. From what I could tell, none of their pieces are sold in this country (not surprising, as I don't think most locals would spend that much money on clothes) and I wondered if the general population knew of them at all. Most girls did wear clothing that was hip and cool enough. The basic uniform consisted of a tee and jeans, along with Converse sneakers or ballerinas. Because this is a Muslim country, shoulders and legs were always covered (and I'd advise anyone else to adhere to this dress code, unless you're in a tourist zone) and some girls wore a hajib (headscarf), though the rest of their outfit remained casual.

Mahdia is famous for its silk weaving. Left: one of the small silk workshops. Right: Colorful ceramics in the Sousse market.

The jewelry souk in Tunis specializing in expensive silver and gold pieces (left). Art in Tunis usually involves verses of the Koran written out in decorative script (right).

Even if many of the souks were a bit annoying with the pushy vendors and touristy wares, it's still lots of fun to browse them. Sfax had the best souks - remarkably untouched by tourism and very authentic. I was most impressed by their fabric shops selling everything from embroidered silk to fine linen. It is also this souk, that was used as a setting in the movie 'The English Patient', as a stand-in for Cairo who's markets were already too modern for a period drama. If you get a chance to visit this part of the world, I'd definitely drop by this city just for the markets alone.

Crafts (left) and blacksmiths (right) in Sfax's souks.

Traditional outfits (left) and dried flowers (right) in Sfax.

Still in Sfax: a men's tailor (left) and women buying fabric nearby (right).

Haute fashion in Sfax's souks: sparkly candyfloss colored dresses seem to be popular...