THE night air was cold and damp on the narrow, walled streets of Tunis’s medina, and the markets and stores all dark and locked up tight for the night. But all it took was a single rap of the iron knocker on the wooden door at 5, rue Dar El Jeld and in that instant a mystical world opened up.  From inside, a man pulled back the arched door decorated with metal studs, and we were escorted through the lobby and into what looked like an Arabian palace. In an enclosed marble courtyard, my fiancée, Elham, and I could see riotously colorful tiled walls, archways covered with arabesque stucco and, at one end, a seated man playing an antique sitar for the patrons who sat around small dinner tables.  Yes, this was only a restaurant  named after the elegant 18th-century private mansion where it is housed, Dar El Jeld. But it happens to be one of Tunis’s finest, with a menu featuring such tangy delights as kabkabou, a tender dorade, with capers, stewed tomatoes and olives, in a delicious lemon, onion and tomato sauce.  But the surprise upon entering Dar El Jeld expresses something you will find more than a few times when visiting this ancient capital city of Tunisia: it is a captivating adventure that exceeds expectations  somehow successfully mixing Mediterranean flavors, Arabic and North African history and a modernist European touch.  Tunis, just inland from the Mediterranean, is known quite well by Europeans  particularly the British and the French, who take cheap flights south so they can be on the nearby beaches in just a few hours. But for most Americans, it is off the beaten path, as Morocco is the much more conventional destination for those who venture to North Africa.  But the Tunis area has an extraordinary amount to offer  and in a way it features more variety and even history, you could argue, than Fez or Marrakesh. The list includes its unrivaled medina, whose alleys and covered passageways go on for miles, filled with markets, mosques and cafes; the nearby ruins of the ancient Phoenician port city of Carthage; the bustling beach town of La Marsa; and the charming hillside village of Sidi Bou Said, where the blue-and-white painted homes have views reaching out for miles over the gentle waters of the Gulf of Tunis.  It is not a place, obviously, that has anywhere near the range of luxury accommodations found on the European side of the Mediterranean. But it has an increasing number of upscale places to stay and eat, not only in Tunis’s center, but also in the beachside villages and resorts just outside the city.  The highlight of a visit to Tunis is the ancient core of the city itself: the seventh-century medina, which, beyond the most intensely touristy spots surrounding Jemaa Ez Zitouna (the Great Mosque), has a more genuine feeling than its counterparts in Morocco.  Yes, it is true that during peak tourist times in the summer, the number of foreigners at the central souks packed into the covered corridors that surround the Great Mosque can easily outnumber the locals. And the merchants invite you into their stores, trying to guess what country you come from by greeting you in French, English, Spanish or German.  But venture out beyond this area, losing your way through the alternating shadows and sunlight of the twisting streets, and you are overtaken by a sensual assault: the smells of the burning incense and spice stores; the undulating chant of the prayer calls; the blue, beige and orange doors that decorate certain homes; and the local Tunisians, pushing carts or carrying overstuffed bags of goods.  WHAT makes the medina so special is that there is a great deal of real commerce that still goes on there, as at Mourad Bouali’s closet-sized silversmith workshop on Rue Sidi Ben Arous, where he and his brother-in-law make custom-ordered silver lamps using hammers, a hot, blue flame and rolls of fine silver. Take a break at Café Ez Zitouna or Café Essour, both on Rue Jemaa Ez Zitouna, for a coffee or tea and snack.  The Halfaouine neighborhood, which starts just outside the medina’s northern walls, also offers scenes that are entirely varnish free, as thousands of residents mill about buying up the endless supply of fresh meats, vegetables, fish and other essentials. A man, at the foot of the main square, holds six live chickens in his hands, bargaining a fair price for his game with particular gusto. It makes New York’s Union Square farmers’ market look like a minimart.
From a Seventh-century medina to luxe hotels by the beach, the ancient capital of Tunis is a many-faceted gem.