Essaraya Restaurant — Restaurant in Tunis

This restaurant is truly a hidden gem. It’s tucked away in a small alley, and at first it was hard to find, but a kind local guided me there. I do wish the entrance was a little easier to spot, but once inside, it feels like dining in a palace.

I came around 6:30 p.m. when almost every restaurant in the Medina was already closing, and I couldn’t find anywhere else for dinner. This place was one of the very few still open—and they serve until 11:30 p.m. If you ever struggle to find an open restaurant in the evening, this is definitely the one to go to.

The atmosphere is magical, with live music creating such a warm and inviting vibe. The staff are incredibly kind and polite. Our waiter spoke French and was so thoughtful. After dinner, when it started raining very heavily, he even walked me all the way to the main road with the restaurant’s only umbrella and helped me try to find a taxi.

When I still couldn’t get one because of the rain, I unexpectedly met the young owner of the restaurant, who kindly drove me back to my Airbnb himself. I was so touched by this generosity and hospitality.

Everyone here was so warm and genuine. I truly appreciate their kindness and want to thank them through this review. I also heard they are planning to add guest rooms, which I think would be amazing because the restaurant already has a beautiful view over the Medina.

Highly recommend this place—not only for the food and atmosphere but also for the people who make...

The Wretched Feast at Essaraya’s Hall

Through winding streets beneath the evening glow, We sought a meal to set our hearts aglow. The call of scent and sound led us inside, Where warmth and music promised joy supplied.

Yet doom arrived upon a stale-bread throne, A crust so stiff it cracked against the stone. The soup lay cold, a shadow of its name, And brik, drowned deep in oil, bore no flame.

And tuna—Gods! A plague upon our plates, A fishy doom no stomach tolerates. It filled our mouths, our lungs, our weary souls, A stinking tide that swallowed all control.

A borger, small, yet dense as lead and fate, A cube of meat we dared not contemplate. The promised sweets, our one and only prayer, Arrived as lies, dissolved in empty air.

No wine to dull the grief, no drink, no cheer, No mercy for the fools who wandered here. And worst of all—the price! A king’s demand, For food unfit to feed the lowliest hand.

The music played, the lanterns softly burned, The couscous, fine—at best, the least we spurned. Yet as we fled, one thought still chilled our spine: This wretched night had cost us one-four-nine.

P.S. My friends and I got food poisoning from this...

I'll start with this: I think a lot of the reviews are fake. We called in advance and asked for a reservation and checked if they are able to provide a vegetarian meal. We arrive to the restaurant that's impossible to find and the waiter kept pushing us to take drinks and entrees. I ordered the vegetarian meal, I was given rice with boiled vegetables. It was bland and awful, I couldn't finish it. We get the bill and they mark the rice dish at 40Dnr. It's off the menu, and the they basically charged us whatever they wanted and it was more expensive than the meat dish. They show us an other bill, where the vegetarian dish was marked at 35Dnr.we pointed out the discrepancy and after a bit of a fight, they marked down ours to the standard price. We felt like they were definitely taking advantage of us being foreigners. We would have been happy to pay price and more if they were...