Tunisian cuisine is a heady mix of North African, Arab, Turkish and French flavours which uses powerful spices and plenty of fresh vegetables and fish. Although most hotels serve all types of international food, we do recommend you try some local cuisine. Fish plays an important role on any menu and all restaurants proudly feature the freshest catch of the day such as bream, grouper, sea bass and mullet which are the most readily available types of fish. Other seafood speciality dishes are based on prawns, lobster and squid. But if you don't like tuna – watch out! Tuna is added to everything…even when you ask for a vegetarian pizza or a simple green salad. Eggs are another staple ingredient which make an appearance in the most unexpected of dishes. So if you're a vegan or allergic to tuna or eggs – do make sure you let the chef know!

Most nice restaurants in Tunisia welcome customers with complimentary hors d'oeuvres which may include black olives, delicious crusty bread and a small saucer of fiery red harissa paste made from hot chillies. A favourite starter is the famous ‘brik' – a unique Tunisian dish which consists of a triangular shaped envelope of crispy pastry containing a lightly cooked egg topped with fresh herbs and, of course, tuna. It resembles the British firm favourite – the Indian samosa rather closely! Other starter dishes to try include Chorba (a spicy tomato soup); Ojja which are scrambled eggs mixed with tomatoes, pimentos, peppers and garlic; Mechouia made of diced onions, red peppers and tomatoes mixed with olive oil, grilled and then served with hard-boiled eggs.