Five Mediterranean Cuisine Lunches in Tel Aviv

Five Mediterranean Cuisine Lunches in Tel Aviv

By Roshni Udyavar Yehuda

published in the Chef's Arena September 2019 issue

https://ssca.edu.in/assets/pdf/SSCATheChefsArena-September2019.pdf

There is nothing that describes cosmopolitan and vibrant better than the city of Tel Aviv especially along its promenade at Hayarkon Street. Walking along the Tel Aviv beaches from the Reading Power Station to Jaffa has always been a delightful experience, absorbing the sights and sound of the bustling city on the one side while taking in the calmness of the deep blue Mediterranean on the other. The inner lanes of Ben Yehuda, Allenby, Dizengoff and Bugrashov, if you have a taste for art and architecture, can continue to surprise you each time you visit besides some interesting shopping with value for money!

In my short five-day trip, in which I had nothing planned, I was not only delighted by the city despite the heat wave after ‘Laag Baomer’ (a Jewish holiday which involves the lighting of bon fires - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lag_BaOmer), but by the delicious cuisine brought in by the variety of Mediterranean dishes that the city offered.

Walking across Sarona Park, a newly redeveloped colony established by the German Templers (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Templers_(religious_believers)) 140 years ago, on the first afternoon, we bumped into Biga, a kosher restaurant and bakery chain that had an English menu on IPAD! Since it offered a variety of healthy options, we settled for a Currey Stew. The dish is made of black rice, spinach and mushrooms with pieces of tossed Tofu was not only delicious but filling for two, healthy and good value for money at just 60 shekels along with two whole wheat bread accompaniments.

On the second day, since our appointment took us to the spanky and upscale neighbourhood of Ramat Aviv, we decided to stroll into the mall, which is large, well laid out and interesting. On the first floor food zone, we saw Sima’s kitchen. As we were trying to inquire from the super busy stall, the gentleman behind the counter offered us a felafal, which literally melted in my mouth. The food looked middle eastern and delicious. We decided to settle for a combo which offered one main dish, two side dishes and unlimited salad which included pickled jalapeno, spiced onions, carrots, cabbage  and the like. The main dish we selected was couscous with chickpeas, chicken kofta balls in a stew and mushrooms. Once again, a delicious and filling meal for two, all for 50 shekels, add a tall glass of  lemonade made it 60 shekels.

The next day we walked in for lunch at a well-known joint called Felafel Gina near Azrieli Centre. The dish included hummus with boiled chickpeas, olive oil, tahini eaten along with Pita bread and unlimited pickled salad. All this for about 40 shekels.

On Saturday morning, we decided to take a guided tour of the ‘White City’ – about the origins of Tel Aviv in 1907 till the Bauhas movement in 1930s in the famous Rothschild boulevard in the heart of where the Tel or Spring was found by the 64 families which first settled in Tel Aviv. It was a good 2- hour guided walking tour in the streets surrounding Rothschild Boulevard (with its amazingly pretty little houses each of which with a history all its own. On the way back to our hotel on Hayarkon Street, we used Google maps to take the short cut from Rothschild Boulevard to Allenby Street and Ben Yehuda Street.

It was here, while walking on Allenby Street, that we stumbled upon the famous Abulafiyah store – well lit, clean and with people queeuing in to collect freshly baked items. The smell of the baked bread combined with the sight of the large fired oven, drove us in. Although it took us some time to get through with our order, to decide what to eat among so many delectable items, we first ordered a sambusak (the original Middle Eastern dish from which originated samosa) with mushroom and cheese filling, and baked bread with eggs fried on top, along with a plate full of salad. Aboulafiya Bakery on Ben Yehuda street is very famous and has become a household name. The original and oldest branch of this bakery is located in Old Jaffa, near the clock tower started by Walid Abouelafia. The Bakery sells a variety of baked goods, including Pita Bread, Bagels, Sambusak, Egg Bagels, Pizza and sweets like Baklawah and Cnaphe. 

And finally, the last day, and I was wondering that there will surely be a repeat of something I have already tasted. But then when we ended up at Felafel Gabai on Bugroshov Street off Ben Yehuda Street, I was mistaken. On a Sunday, the first working day of the week in Israel, people came streaming in, parking their bicycles, walking in from the beach nearby, foreigners, daily customers, old and young, there was a continuous stream of people being served fresh Middle Eastern delights. We had a two pocket pitas, one with chicken breast and other with shwarma mixed with delightful veggies, salads and spices and of course, accompanied with unlimited salad. After this filling and mouth-watering  dish, we had another Middle Eastern delight, a sweet dish called Malabi, made of almond milk, and sugar and dressed with pomegranate juice and rose water along with lots of powdered almonds and pistachios. After eating all this, it only made sense for me to take a nap! All this was not more than 60 shekels. With the steady stream of people coming into the restaurant from the busy street, the staff served fresh food quickly to customers, while occasionally  breaking into a jolly song promoting the delights of the Felafel Gabai.

Besides these eateries, we found the eateries on the beach-front expensive but after a walk along the beach one evening, we rested peacefully at a restaurant almost touching the beach and had a quarter plate of water melon. Among the eateries along the Tel Aviv promenade, London, with its food varieties and comparative costs, is a good choice.

So, those of you who think you need to pack in your theplas and khakhras on a visit to Israel, think again for here you have dishes dating back to history, bringing in the best of Mediterrenean cuisine -offering the best to non-vegetarians, vegetarians and vegans.

Dr. Roshni Udyavar Yehuda is a Practicing Architect and Academician, whose core competency lies in energy efficient and environmental design of buildings. She is Director, Roshni Udyavar & Associates, Mumbai, an Environmental Architecture and Consultancy Firm established in 2004. She was Head, Rachana Sansad’s Institute of Environmental Architecture from June 2003 to July 2017 where she initiated several environmental projects and headed a postgraduate program. She has more than 20 years of academic and professional experience and has travelled widely on professional assignments to more than 20 countries. She is an avid traveller and loves to learn about culture, food and music wherever she travels – in India or abroad.