As you walk through the buzzing market of Tunis' central Beb El Jazira neighbourhood, a subtle smell of blending spices will fill your nostrils, followed by the unmistakable feeling of your mouth beginning to water. There is only one thing that could satisfy you now, and it's available at the oldest restaurant in town – Tunisia’s iconic lablabi.
Almost 100 years ago, Weld Hanifa opened its doors to customers, later becoming a destination not only for Tunisians but for people from around the world who come to visit just to taste the late Hammadi Droura's recipe.
Served in a ceramic bowl, the dish is mainly made of chickpeas, broken pieces of old bread, a broth rich with Tunisian spices and a sprinkle of olive oil, the never-absent harrisa (a red pepper and garlic-based paste) and a half-cooked egg on top.
It could also be served with harguma sauce, made of lamb head and trotter meat, tuna and occasionally, seafood.
Speaking to The National as she was serving her clients and setting the table, Mr Droura’s daughter-in-law Rachida says there is no other country in the world that could serve lablabi like Tunisians do; it is a dish that only Tunisians know the secrets of.
“The word might be Turkish and was inspiration from the chickpea-only lablabi they serve, but it can in no way be compared to or have similarities to ours,” she said.
Ms Droura says that their tiny restaurant has received some of the most famous artists that the Arab world has ever known, including icons like Egyptian singer Oum Kalthoum and the sensational Abdel Halim Hafez.
But as much as she takes pride in these names having been their customers, she is mostly proud of the connections their lablabi has been able to create between people regardless of the social classes that fade away once they sit on the same table to eat it.
“This meal does not differentiate between the poor and the rich. From big company directors, artists to construction workers and simple housewives, everybody eats here and they are mostly welcomed,” Ms Droura says.
“Even if you do not have the money, no one gets out of here hungry, that is my father in law’s will that we want to preserve.”
According to Sonia Hamzaoui, a culinary expert from the National Heritage Institute, all food in Tunisia, including lablabi, are the product of all the civilisations that came through.
“Even the idea that lablabi is of Turkish origin remains a hypothesis, our culinary heritage is so rich that it is impossible to identify a single source for it,” Ms Hamzaoui told The National.
Throughout its history, Tunisia has been conquered by many, including the Romans, Byzantine, Vandals, Arabs and Ottomans, all of whom had influence on many of the country’s modern daily life aspects.
“We have recipes that even date back to the Punic period, every dish could be inspired from many cultures but the way we cook dishes today cannot be compared to how the rest of the world makes it,” she says.
“Dishes such as Lablabi, Mloukhia and even the famous couscous are so different and are certainly a testament to the uniqueness and richness of our culinary heritage.”
“It is impossible for our lablabi to be imitated; our harissa is incomparable and our olive oil is known for its quality around the world,” Ayari, who has been cooking lablabi for the past 40 years at Weld Hanifa’s restaurant told The National as he was pouring a savoury broth made of harissa and spices that he did not want to specify as he considers it his special secret.
The chefs at the Weld Hanifa restaurant in Ben Al Jazira are certainly not the only famous Lablabi makers in town.
Uncle Hattab Barrouta – as many Tunisians call him – owns a restaurant just a few steps from the busy metro station, several high schools and offices. A diverse crowd across several generations has created memories here, including myself.
“My relationship with lablabi is a relationship of reminiscence to my beautiful childhood years with my late father, when we used to go to uncle Hattab to get lunch when he finished work,” Intissar Gassara, 31, told The National.
“Lablabi also represents the homeland … popular dishes are a definition and a representation of our Tunisian identity that distinguishes us from the rest of the Arab world,” Ms Gassara says.
“Lablabi will never vanish, I hope that this food will never lose its authenticity due to modernity, it is something we should preserve regardless of time.”
The love that Tunisians have for their culinary habits, namely lablabi, is the symbol of a simple need that all humans share; creating connections built around love, family and friends – and a national pride like no other.
“This shop is built on love, the love of believers among each other, the love for merciful acts and a love for the notion of family,” Ms Droura says.
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The years Ramadan fell in May
The five pillars of Islam
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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SQUADS
Bangladesh (from): Shadman Islam, Mominul Haque, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Mahmudullah Riyad, Mohammad Mithun, Mushfiqur Rahim, Liton Das, Taijul Islam, Mosaddek Hossain, Nayeem Hasan, Mehedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Ebadat Hossain, Abu Jayed
Afghanistan (from): Rashid Khan (capt), Ihsanullah Janat, Javid Ahmadi, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi, Asghar Afghan, Ikram Alikhil, Mohammad Nabi, Qais Ahmad, Sayed Ahmad Shirzad, Yamin Ahmadzai, Zahir Khan Pakteen, Afsar Zazai, Shapoor Zadran
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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MATCH INFO
Karnatake Tuskers 114-1 (10 ovs)
Charles 57, Amla 47
Bangla Tigers 117-5 (8.5 ovs)
Fletcher 40, Moores 28 no, Lamichhane 2-9
Bangla Tiger win by five wickets
If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Fines for littering
In Dubai:
Dh200 for littering or spitting in the Dubai Metro
Dh500 for throwing cigarette butts or chewing gum on the floor, or littering from a vehicle.
Dh1,000 for littering on a beach, spitting in public places, throwing a cigarette butt from a vehicle
In Sharjah and other emirates
Dh500 for littering - including cigarette butts and chewing gum - in public places and beaches in Sharjah
Dh2,000 for littering in Sharjah deserts
Dh500 for littering from a vehicle in Ras Al Khaimah
Dh1,000 for littering from a car in Abu Dhabi
Dh1,000 to Dh100,000 for dumping waste in residential or public areas in Al Ain
Dh10,000 for littering at Ajman's beaches
Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier
ICC Academy, November 22-28
UAE fixtures
Nov 22, v Malaysia
Nov 23, v Hong Kong
Nov 25, v Bhutan
Nov 26, v Kuwait
Nov 28, v Nepal
ICC T20I rankings
14. Nepal
17. UAE
25. Hong Kong
34. Kuwait
35. Malaysia
44. Bhutan
UAE squad
Chaya Mughal (captain), Natasha Cherriath, Samaira Dharnidharka, Kavisha Egodage, Mahika Gaur, Priyanjali Jain, Suraksha Kotte, Vaishnave Mahesh, Judit Peter, Esha Rohit, Theertha Satish, Chamani Seneviratne, Khushi Sharma, Subha Venkataraman
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
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Age: 32
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First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
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Kibsons%20Cares
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The five pillars of Islam
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