I did not come to Tel Aviv to cook, and so far, I am succeeding admirably on that score. It is possible that this is the most densely “restauranted” city I have ever visited. Even more so than Paris. You may recall I marvelled at the number of hair salons…well, restaurants and cafes outnumber them exponentially. And they are all full, pretty much all the time, and this is the “off season”! There are days when I wonder if anyone eats at home. Or goes to work for that matter.
There are some establishments that are really clear (to say the least) as to what is on offer, and I have been collecting photos of these commonly themed restaurant signs which I will share throughout the post. I find them to be a fine example of the direct approach for which Israelis are famous.
Over all, we notice less take-out than at home; it seems that Israelis prefer to eat freshly made food, right away. I am not sure if it is the “fresh” part or the “right away” part that is the deciding factor; I suspect the latter. With such a temperate climate you can eat outside most of the time, and people do. In fact, many restaurants have more outdoor space than indoor…and there are more than a few casual eateries that look a lot like someone’s main floor kitchen with a bunch of tables on the sidewalk. The joy of eating al fresco can be somewhat dimmed by the fact that this also tends to be the smoking section, and also by the proximity of some of the outer tables to the bicycles and other motorized vehicles that whizz by ON THE SIDEWALK, narrowly avoiding your table.
In all but the really “upscale” places, portions are huge; it is not unusual for us to take half home. Pastries and baked goods are delicious and abundant, and the gelato is excellent and widely (too widely) available… but people are mostly thin. This is an irritating trait that Tel Aviv shares with Paris, where we used to observe pencil-slim young women ask for extra whipped cream on their third course desserts (requisite dog at their feet), with a complete and utter lack of concern for weight and/or diet. The other day, the same thing happened as I ate my salad at Aroma. The thin young woman next to me had to sit down and savour a giant, and I mean giant, piece of cake. It happens all the time and it is really not fair.
In our immediate neighbourhood, just around Rabin Square, we have a 24 hour French-style brasserie, (although the French themselves would NEVER eat around the clock), a Vietnamese restaurant from France (kosher), a Hawaiian Poke place (built around marinated raw fish, and also kosher), 5-6 Italian places, a fine dining international style restaurant, several meat places, and at least 20-30 casual cafes with a wide range of menu items.
And that is all within a 10 minute walk…within 20 minutes we are numbering well over 100 places, maybe more, and so it goes. So much choice…so little time. And don’t get me started on the bakeries.
Our current favourite for a late breakfast or lunch is actually a book store on Rabin Square; it has a small, eclectic selection of English and Hebrew books, with maybe 12-15 tables wedged inside, another 6-7 or so outside, and a dairy/vegetarian menu as long as your arm. The first time we went there, I had 2 slices of challah french toast, with fruit, crème fraiche and date honey to die for. It was in the “small breakfast” section of the menu. (BTW, date honey is amazing…move over, maple syrup.)
I cannot really account for the prevalence of unambiguously “meat-based” restaurant signs but I sure enjoy seeing them.