Living in a hotel for over two weeks (a situation I hope to resolve soon), I'm forced to eat at restaurants a lot. This has been a good experience for the most part, as I've tried most all the Tunisian staples as well as Tunisian takes on pizza, doner, and other non-indigenous foods. Let's say the former have been quite satisfying and the latter... less so. Apart the effects of undercooked eggs on my stomach, one aspect of the Tunisian culinary experience that has stood out is the obvious difference between how restaurants are staffed here and how it's done back in the States.
Every time I walk by a typical blue collar restaurant here, no matter the time of day, I see the same people at work. It's usually a bare bones crew - one cook, one waiter, and then another guy who seems to be somewhere in between. Everyone in this industry seems to work very long hours, seven days a week, and his place in the restaurant is clearly a defining aspect of his (and it's usually a man) life. You don't see high school or college age people at work in restaurants, with the exception of a few fast food places on Avenue Bourguiba. (None of which, it bears mentioning, are American chains. McDonald's and Burger King are not present here.)
One gets the impression that each restaurant is a family-run organization, and that means that several members of the family will be there at all times. The concept of who exactly works there and who doesn't, however, is sometimes vague. I asked for a cup of tea with my meal at a welcoming but very simple place near my hotel. The waiter pondered this, looked at first as though he'd say no, but then changed his mind. About five minutes later, someone I had noticed in the restaurant when I had first arrived came in the door with a plastic cup of tea in his hand. Where it came from, I have no idea. The tea courier seemed to be a friend or relative of the waiter, who could mobilize him in the event that something needed to be procured from outside. Maybe he got a small payment for this, but maybe it was just a way to be helpful.
It's clear that the absolute minimum number of staff must be used at most restaurants - I imagine hiring an extra waiter, especially one who is inexperienced or inefficient, could lead to higher operational costs that could force food prices to be raised. In Tunisia, especially at a working-class place, that would likely mean that customers trying to stretch their meager incomes in an inflationary environment would take their business somewhere more affordable. Hiring in shifts or having multiple cooks is just not the way to run a successful business unless you are catering to the posh elements of Tunisian society or going after European tourists. Just get a guy who can cook, a guy who can seat and serve the customers, and someone else to fill in the gaps, and you're set.
As a newcomer to the city, I must say that it's comforting to find the same waiter greeting me every time I return to a restaurant. The atmosphere at the non-touristy places is very casual, and you'll find that the large menu posted outside has little to no relationship with what is actually available. Just chat with your waiter a minute, he'll tell you the handful of things you can actually order, and that's that. Prices seem to be sort of improvised after the meal, and although I sometimes suspect a tourist surcharge, it's usually so negligible that I don't bring it up. I've also learned that an order of fish is invariably the whole fish, staring at you while you dissect it. It's a little more intense than getting a trout filet at a seafood restaurant in the States, but once you try a perfectly grilled fish here (there seem to be two kinds commonly served, but I have no idea what they are), dusted with cumin, you would never complain. Just save some for the cat watching you from under the table as you eat.
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