Restaurants in Israel & The Palestinian Territories
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Focaccio Bar
The combination of good food at reasonable prices has made this one of the most popular restaurants in town. The speciality of course is focaccia, baked fresh in the taboun (clay oven) and eaten on a sunny patio. A variety of toppings is available and portions are large and reasonably priced; try the Bulgarian cheese and olive spread (32NIS). The menu also includes a nice 350g entrecôte steak, deep-fried calamari and fried mushroom dishes.
reviewed
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El-Reda
The weekend papers love to rave about this restaurant in a restored 120-year-old Arab mansion, and for once it's justified. The views of the basilica (stunning from the rooftop terrace), the food (friendly owner Daher Zeidani makes only what he likes and that's traditional Nazareth dishes with a Mediterranean twist) and the atmosphere (occasional live music and poetry) make this one of the better restaurants in the north of Israel.
reviewed
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Manta Ray
Spectacularly set on the beach, Manta Ray combines a five-star seafood menu, attentive service and Mediterranean views. Pick a few dishes off the mezze platter (we liked the goat cheese and the eggplant) and then enjoy a main course of roasted scallops, sea bass fillet, grilled shrimp or a juicy steak. It's also a great place for breakfast.
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Greg Coffee
Decorated with kettles and jars of spices and coffee beans, Greg might remind you of your mom's kitchen back home. Aside from the homy feel, you get excellent coffee and brownies, while laptop users can access the free wi-fi.
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Babette
Waffles and coffee are the specialities of this popular student hang-out, which is just big enough to fit half a dozen standing patrons.
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Fatoush
Set up like a medieval Arabic house, complete with burgundy cushions, nargileh (water pipes) and candle lamps, Fatoush is an atmospheric and popular restaurant serving a fusion of Western and Middle Eastern cuisine. It's named after a kind of salad eaten by poor people of the Levant - a Middle Eastern version of peasant pie - but there is much more to the menu than fatoush.
Try the aroos al-wadi (pride of the valley), baked bread topped with minced calf meat, or tasty seafood dishes. You can dine inside a cavernous underground chamber or, in pleasant weather, it's just as nice to eat under the olive trees on the street-side patio.
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Chakra
This casual but classy dining experience whips up legendary seafood dishes cooked with Mediterranean spices. Less expensive pastas are also available and there are steaks too (but these are nothing special). Stick with the seafood; choose the aubergine and tahina side dish and you’ll have a wonderful gastronomic experience. It’s located under Cup o’ Joe, with the entrance in the back.
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Village Green
A vegetarian’s delight, this kosher restaurant offers homemade dishes made from the freshest ingredients. It’s cafeteria style with various offerings of vegetable soups, quiches, veggie burgers, pizza, blintzes, savoury pies and lasagne, all served with home-baked bread. Meals are sold by weight (8.5NIS per 100g). If you still have room for dessert try one of the freshly baked pies.
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Dinner Rush
A concept bar, this one has the bartenders doubling as chefs who serve up American diner-style food - pasta, burgers and chicken wings. Portions are large, reasonably priced and usually satisfying, but avoid the disappointing goulash. The food comes up hot and fast; it's right next to the Gan Ha'em metro station.
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Hummus Ashkara
This is where locals go when they're after excellent hummus and fuul (fava bean paste). Further credibility was earned when a national newspaper recently voted its hummus the best in Israel. The sign is in Hebrew only, so look out for the Coca-Cola sign and the tables on the street.
reviewed
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Hummus Said
Deeply entrenched in the souq, this place has become something of an institution, doling up that much-loved Middle Eastern dip to throngs of visitors from around the country. For 15NIS, you'll get salads, pickles, pita and a big glob of hummus with fuul (fava bean paste) or garlic.
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Bagels & Coffee
US-style bagels served up with your choice of cream cheese or veggie toppings.
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Messa
More than a restaurant with impeccable haute cuisine, Messa has a magical quality that raises the restaurant experience to a new level. The centrepiece of the white-on-white dining hall is an elongated table, where strangers are placed together to mix and mingle over their seafood casseroles, zucchini flowers and crème brûlée. Around the edge are small alcoves where others disappear into enormous black cushions so soft they nearly induce sleep.
The servers appear frequently to announce options for the next course, and everything is made from scratch by chef Aviv Moshe, who blends his Kurdish heritage with French and Mediterranean cooking. Following your meal, spare…
reviewed
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1868
This French-Italian gourmet restaurant is housed in one of the oldest buildings in West Jerusalem, built (obviously) in 1868. Despite its age, owner Guy Ben-Simon has worked painstakingly to renovate the interior without losing the classic Jerusalem look and feel. There is an extensive wine collection and starters are little works of art - try the braised endives, flavoured with vinegar, walnuts and croutons. As a meat kosher restaurant, beef, lamb and fish dominate the main-course options.
If money is no object, order the nine-course tasting menu, which has the chef personally visiting your table to manage the whole affair. Classical and jazz music concerts are sometimes…
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Coolinary
The latest addition to Jerusalem's restaurant row, Coolinary is a gourmet's delight with one of the best names in town. The three energetic Jerusalemites who opened the place went with a romantic, Spanish-influenced interior of dark wood and candles. One whole wall is taken up with wine bottles that are reached with a sliding library ladder; the wine list is five pages long so ask your server to assist in choosing one.
Ingredients and recipes from around the globe contribute to the menu - you have a choice of roast beef in a tortilla, stir-frys, ravioli or a 350g steak marinated in vodka. Goose liver in wild berry sauce is a house speciality. Desserts are also excellent -…
reviewed
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24 Rupees
Down a windswept street in southern Tel Aviv, amid motorcycle shops and warehouses, sits this extremely popular rooftop Indian restaurant. The setting is reminiscent of a Sinai tiki-camp, complete with floor mattresses, colourful carpets and low tables, but the food is definitely Indian.
You have your choice of three types of vegetarian thali and homemade drinks - try the mango lassi. There is a very mellow, secret-society vibe here and the owners Uri and Neta are dedicated to preparing food with the freshest ingredients, all making it worth the long trek. A word of advice: the door downstairs is hard to spot and looks locked - don't worry, it's not.
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Garden
If the Garden had as good a PR machine as Diana, it too would be knocking back customers. The rocket and tabbouleh salads are so fresh they look like they could wander off the plate, while the labneh (thick yoghurt flavoured with garlic) is delicately spiced and competes for attention with deliciously fragrant meats grilled on cinnamon sticks, and it's all washed down with fresh lemonade. The food here is second to none.
Unfortunately the huge space is not easy to fill and the restaurant appears to suffer from the killer 'if it's not full, it's obviously not good' syndrome.
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Torrance Restaurant
If you're not staying at the Scots Hotel then a meal at the Torrance Restaurant - preferably on the verandah to take in the spectacular views - should be on the list. The menu changes daily and the dishes are filled with fresh Galilee produce such as the ubiquitous St Peter's fish, herbs from the kitchen garden and local cheeses. The impressive cellar has a selection of boutique Galilee wines.
The food is pretty good, but it's the setting, in the original Scots Hospital building, and the chance to have a sticky beak around the rest of the property that is the real attraction.
reviewed
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Douzan
Douzan means 'to tune an instrument.' Likewise the atmosphere and food in this restaurant is meant to tune your senses. Decorated with old clocks, musical instruments, antique furnishings and velvet cushions, owner Fadi Najar has created a harmonious atmosphere and is proud that both Arabs and Jews dine together under his roof. The food is all home cooked, prepared by Fadi's mother Leila.
It's a fusion of French and Arab recipes, with specials like chicken cordon bleu, and some unexpected treats such as sfeeha (small meat pie topped with feta cheese and pine nuts).
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Darna
A narrow passageway off leafy Horkanos St leads into this charming slice of Casablanca, where patrons nestle inside small alcoves decorated with imported Moroccan furnishings, tiles and artwork. There is a warm atmosphere here (darna darcom means, 'My home is your home') and the service is impeccable. Among excellent menu options is the pastilla fassia, a flaky pastry stuffed with Cornish hen, almonds and cinnamon.
If you've come with a friend, try as a main course the mechoui, a marinated lamb shoulder roasted on a spit. Reservations are required.
reviewed
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Café Tamar
This place was opened when the British Mandate was still in effect and the atmosphere hasn't changed much since those heady days.
Owner Sarah Stern (who has been in charge since 1955) can still be found at the café, gabbing with her customers about her days spent serving in the British army. Her specialty, half a bagel with cheese, a hard boiled egg and salad has been the cornerstone dish for half a century. The crowd is a mix of old-timers and neighbourhood intellectual types. Visit on Friday to watch some serious chess matches.
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Hamarakia
Old drums, typewriters, records and a beat-up piano line the walls of this purposely ramshackle restaurant. Check out the chandelier made from spoons and ladles! The name of the place (Soup Pot) pretty much sums up the menu – you have your choice of about five different soups. Shakshuka (eggs poached in a skillet of tangy stewed tomatoes; 25NIS) is also available. It’s a very social atmosphere, with just a few tables so you may end up eating with new friends. Live music (jazz jams and acoustic grunge) is sometimes played here.
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Jacko Seafood
Something of a Haifa institution, Jacko has been a consistent purveyor of seafood dishes for the past 30 years. Top marks to the excellent fish dishes, including salmon, bream, bass, shark, triggerfish and St Peter's fish. These can be prepared a half-dozen ways; try the house speciality, the Jacko, cooked in butter, garlic and white wine. Other underwater critters (calamari, crab or shrimp) are also available, plus there are grilled Turkish kebabs.
Note that there is another Jacko at Carmel Centre on 11 Moriah Blvd.
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Little Jerusalem
The peaceful patio overlooking a grove of pine trees is the perfect place to enjoy a quiet dinner or late Israeli breakfast. The kitchen mixes Western and Mediterranean menus, with a nice selection of seafood and meat dishes. On Tuesday at 8.30pm, the restaurant hosts a wine and cheese evening (95NIS) with live jazz music. Chamber-music aficionados can hear a concert here on Friday at 11am (for an additional fee), while Jewish traditional music is played on Saturday evening. Advance bookings are essential.
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Amigo Emil
A 400-year-old building and former workshop, Amigo Emil has been chiselled down to the bare stone foundations and decorated with pictures of old Jerusalem. There are some nice appetisers, including a mezze of goat’s cheese, tabbouleh, aubergine and hummus. A Jerusalem plate (40NIS) gets you all of these. The house speciality is musakhan, a dish of spiced chicken and onions stuffed into Bedouin bread (58NIS), or if you prefer red meat, try the qidreh, lamb with rice and chickpeas (80NIS).
reviewed