In 2019, dozens of young people, women and older customers waited inside traditional bakeries in Kairouan, central Tunisia, for bread to emerge from hot stone ovens. Local reporting describes customers pressing for a leading position as the loaves finish baking, baskets in hand and arms reaching for the first bread.
The loaves use wheat or barley and may be flavoured with olive oil and spices. Because the old bakeries have limited capacity, customers stand for tens of minutes and sometimes return repeatedly to check the next batch. The daily wait is the price of carrying a familiar, inherited taste back to the family table.