Tunis’ Le Dictateur dishes out oppressive themes on its menu
tunis — A steak dubbed the “Grilled Freedom” is just one stand-out dish on the menu of the Tunisian capital’s “Le Dictateur” restaurant, which is not exactly to the taste of officialdom.
Six years after the North African country’s revolution that sparked the Arab Spring, “Le Dictateur” vies for the foodie business in the upmarket Cite Ennasr suburb of Tunis.
“We had to make ourselves known, to come up with a name and concept that attracted attention because good cuisine alone is often not enough,” said owner Seif Ben Hammouda.
Against a bricked background, portraits that include Charlie Chaplin aping Adolf Hitler are mounted behind cages on the walls, creating a prison-like atmosphere.
Joseph Stalin and Melania Trump, wife of the US president, compete for space in murals on other walls, as a picture of Russian President Vladimir Putin also looks down on diners. The oppressive theme extends to the menu, with signature dishes such as “Grilled Freedom”, “Anarchy”, “Opposition” and “Putsch” on offer.
“I wanted to take full advantage of the freedom of expression that’s been the main achievement of the revolution,” said the restaurateur, who returned in 2008 from France where he studied marketing and management.
But he still waited for several years after the 2011 fall of Tunisian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali before beginning his bold culinary venture.
Only last March did the restaurant open its doors under the daring name and logo of a figure resembling North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un but also sporting a Hitler moustache.
The Tunisian authorities were “very much disturbed”, Ben Hammouda said, and a wave of municipal and even some state officials descended on “Le Dictateur” to check it out.
The reasons they gave were that his paperwork and the hygienic conditions on the premises had to pass muster.
However, Ben Hammouda was also directly asked to change the establishment’s name and logo — “to avoid problems”, as he was advised by one minister.
The project was all considered “a bit shocking”, Ben Hammouda said. —