When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

Haj Kahil

So, what is Israeli food? The closest thing to a one-sentence answer: a cross-fertilization of Moroccan, Tunisian, Lebanese, Mediterranean, Arab and Jewish food cultures. But there were definitely some reoccurring themes during my week in Israel: olives, falafel, fresh vegetable salads, pita, filo dough pastries, and many bowls of hummus. Here are the best things I ate in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and beyond.

Meeting up for dinner with visitors from overseas celebrating their engagement called for a special restaurant, and a friend suggested we try Haj Kahil in Jaffa. As we were currently experiencing the heaviest heat wave of the year, my wife insisted that I first find out if this Arab style eatery had air conditioning. When I called to make a reservation, I asked this all-important question. The man who answered the phone laughed for many seconds. “Do you think I could work in a restaurant in Jaffa in the summer months if there wasn’t air conditioning?” he asked me. Haj Kahil indeed has air conditioning, and you can’t miss it due to its prominent location at the edge of the Clock Square in Jaffa. Well, you could be slightly mistaken if you turned towards either the Haj Kahil Express or the Haj Kahil Shwarma restaurants across the street. Apparently they all belong to the same Israeli Arab family which has a track record of four decades in the restaurant business. Taxi drivers and locals know the square as Haj Kahil Square. We were shown to our table at an hour when the restaurant was quite empty, but reservations can be necessary at other times. While the menu featured much of the standard fare of Israeli Arab restaurants, there were specialties listed that can be attributed to the chef’s Galilee orientation. We started with the typical wide selection of salads and openers, but these were extra special. Homemade delicacies The cauliflower with tahine sauce was excellent, as were the freshly made hummus, the labaneh with garlic and walnuts, and the eggplant salads. The outstanding dish was the homemade Iraqi pita, served straight out of the taboon oven. This pita, covered with a delicate blanket of spices, was so fresh and tasty that dipping it into the salads was almost sacrilegious. Choosing a main dish was difficult as there were so many house specialties on the menu. We ended up selecting the most expensive item, which actually was quite reasonable as it was shared by four diners. The lamb shoulder stuffed with rice, ground entrecote, dried figs, pine nuts, and almonds had apparently been roasting in that same taboon for seven hours. The lamb was served on a huge platter and the amiable waiter cut it into portions and served each of us more than we could eat. This quantity of lamb would have been sufficient for a table of eight. The meat was cooked to perfection and melted in our mouths. We simply had no room for dessert, although Haj Kahil is noted for its kanafeh, pistachio malabi pudding, and atayif filled with walnuts and cinnamon. Those will have to wait for our next visit. On the tourists’ map Haj Kahil is certainly finding its place on the visitors’ map of must-eat restaurants in Israel and many impressive reviews of the dining experience have appeared on the Internet. Paris-based food blogger David Lebovitz ate lunch at Haj Kahil in June and declared that the experience had resulted in “the best day of my life.” One of his dining companions was almost lulled into a trance by the fried Halloumi cheese. Lebovitz, a former award-winning pastry chef, was intrigued by the pita as well. “I could not get enough of that bread, which they brought out to the table with nearly twenty different dishes for us, everything from miniature pickled eggplants to a salad heaped with fresh herbs and crispy nuts, whose name I can’t remember, but whose taste I will never forget.” Joan Nathan, Tablet Magazine’s food columnist and the author of 10 cookbooks, included Haj Kahil in her 2010 tour of restaurants in the HolyLand. She, too, raved about the pita. “As good as it was, the prize there was the laffa, the thin flat bread slapped to the sides of the taboon,” she wrote. Haj Kahil is a diner’s delight and vegetarians will not go away hungry. The prices are reasonable, the service is efficient and friendly, and above all, the food is delicious.

So, what is Israeli food? The closest thing to a one-sentence answer: a cross-fertilization of Moroccan, Tunisian, Lebanese, Mediterranean, Arab and Jewish food cultures. But there were definitely some reoccurring themes during my week in Israel: olives, falafel, fresh vegetable salads, pita, filo dough pastries, and many bowls of hummus. Here are the best things I ate in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and beyond.

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

Katrina (born in Tallinn) of The Gastronomical Me blog (written in London) dropped me an e-mail few days ago. I quote: I'm flying to Israel tomorrow, for a week, will stay in Tel Aviv and Jeruselem and the Deadsea. I know you went there during summer through that social group. I've read a bit on your site already but if you were to pick say 3 places that surprised you the most, perhaps the places you don't think people are likely to discover just by wondering around, what would you recommend? I had the pleasure of visiting Israel last June in the honorable company of David Lebovitz and Ms Marmite Lover as well as two lovely young American food writers. I haven't managed to blog nearly as much about the trip as I would have wanted, but here's my TOP 3 recommendations for both places. I have met Katrina on a couple of occasions, and think I have a vague idea of what would interest her - hope I'm not too wide off the mark, Katrina :D JERUSALEM 1) Drinks and nibbles at the rooftop restaurant of the Mamilla Hotel. Wonderful views across the city during sunset, excellent modern Israeli food. We had nibbles there on the first night in town, just getting to know each other and our wonderful hosts Adi and Joanna (hi there!) and our packed itinerary. (More Mamilla photos here) 2) A tour of the Mahane-Yehuda Market is a must - and I've actually managed to blog about that. (More Mahane-Yehuda photos here) I also think Katrina would enjoy a quick khatchapuri at the Georgian café Hatchapuria (5 HaShikma St, just outside the market). Here's their lovely Adjarian cheese khatchapuri with soft egg: 3) Hummus and falafels, mint tea, cardamom-spiced coffee, mutabbaq - all on Via Dolorosa. We popped into a hummusia somewhere between the seventh and eighth station. Excellent first hummus indeed! We then followed up the stairs and just on the right at the end of the last station, stopped for mutabbaq, the super sweet Arab filo pastry, mint tea and cardamom coffee. Both photos by David Garb, one of the photographers on our tour TEL AVIV 1) Haj Kahil is an Arab/Palestine restaurant in Jaffa, and the lunch we enjoyed there was probably one of the tastiest and most memorable during the trip full of really excellent food. The mezze table alone was ten points out of ten, a wonderful selection of fresh and delicious vegetable dishes. Here's the waiter with the main course - just before our "argument" whether I should have a huge portion as I was eating for two (pregnant with bebe number three, remember :)) - his view; or whether I should only have a small portion of that beautiful 8-hour-lamb, as there was a good-sized baby taking up all that free space in my belly already - my idea: David Lebovitz has written a beautiful post about that restaurant and I would definitely go back for a meal or two when in Israel again. This is my Number 1 recommendation for Israel! 2) Eyal Shani's The Salon only opens twice a week (Wednesday and Thursday), 8 Ma'avar Yabok, Nakhalat Yitzhak, Givataim, telephone 052-7035888. Apparently it's hard to secure a table and it's pretty pricey, and definitely not a place if you want a quiet place to enjoy a meal. But I trust Katrina would enjoy the rowdy and positively crazy atmosphere of the place. The food was delicious as well, of course :) Eyal Shani in action. 3) A leisurely breakfast at Manta Ray at Alma Beach. The food was good, but I have especially fond memories of having breakfast at the relaxing seaside café - the vibe and the atmosphere were great. Remember - there six recommendations are posted here with a specific food-loving girl in mind - might not be the same places I'd suggest to a retired couple or a young family with three small kids :)

Meeting up for dinner with visitors from overseas celebrating their engagement called for a special restaurant, and a friend suggested we try Haj Kahil in Jaffa. As we were currently experiencing the heaviest heat wave of the year, my wife insisted that I first find out if this Arab style eatery had air conditioning. When I called to make a reservation, I asked this all-important question. The man who answered the phone laughed for many seconds. “Do you think I could work in a restaurant in Jaffa in the summer months if there wasn’t air conditioning?” he asked me. Haj Kahil indeed has air conditioning, and you can’t miss it due to its prominent location at the edge of the Clock Square in Jaffa. Well, you could be slightly mistaken if you turned towards either the Haj Kahil Express or the Haj Kahil Shwarma restaurants across the street. Apparently they all belong to the same Israeli Arab family which has a track record of four decades in the restaurant business. Taxi drivers and locals know the square as Haj Kahil Square. We were shown to our table at an hour when the restaurant was quite empty, but reservations can be necessary at other times. While the menu featured much of the standard fare of Israeli Arab restaurants, there were specialties listed that can be attributed to the chef’s Galilee orientation. We started with the typical wide selection of salads and openers, but these were extra special. Homemade delicacies The cauliflower with tahine sauce was excellent, as were the freshly made hummus, the labaneh with garlic and walnuts, and the eggplant salads. The outstanding dish was the homemade Iraqi pita, served straight out of the taboon oven. This pita, covered with a delicate blanket of spices, was so fresh and tasty that dipping it into the salads was almost sacrilegious. Choosing a main dish was difficult as there were so many house specialties on the menu. We ended up selecting the most expensive item, which actually was quite reasonable as it was shared by four diners. The lamb shoulder stuffed with rice, ground entrecote, dried figs, pine nuts, and almonds had apparently been roasting in that same taboon for seven hours. The lamb was served on a huge platter and the amiable waiter cut it into portions and served each of us more than we could eat. This quantity of lamb would have been sufficient for a table of eight. The meat was cooked to perfection and melted in our mouths. We simply had no room for dessert, although Haj Kahil is noted for its kanafeh, pistachio malabi pudding, and atayif filled with walnuts and cinnamon. Those will have to wait for our next visit. On the tourists’ map Haj Kahil is certainly finding its place on the visitors’ map of must-eat restaurants in Israel and many impressive reviews of the dining experience have appeared on the Internet. Paris-based food blogger David Lebovitz ate lunch at Haj Kahil in June and declared that the experience had resulted in “the best day of my life.” One of his dining companions was almost lulled into a trance by the fried Halloumi cheese. Lebovitz, a former award-winning pastry chef, was intrigued by the pita as well. “I could not get enough of that bread, which they brought out to the table with nearly twenty different dishes for us, everything from miniature pickled eggplants to a salad heaped with fresh herbs and crispy nuts, whose name I can’t remember, but whose taste I will never forget.” Joan Nathan, Tablet Magazine’s food columnist and the author of 10 cookbooks, included Haj Kahil in her 2010 tour of restaurants in the HolyLand. She, too, raved about the pita. “As good as it was, the prize there was the laffa, the thin flat bread slapped to the sides of the taboon,” she wrote. Haj Kahil is a diner’s delight and vegetarians will not go away hungry. The prices are reasonable, the service is efficient and friendly, and above all, the food is delicious.

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

So, what is Israeli food? The closest thing to a one-sentence answer: a cross-fertilization of Moroccan, Tunisian, Lebanese, Mediterranean, Arab and Jewish food cultures. But there were definitely some reoccurring themes during my week in Israel: olives, falafel, fresh vegetable salads, pita, filo dough pastries, and many bowls of hummus. Here are the best things I ate in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and beyond.

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

Haj Kahil

So, what is Israeli food? The closest thing to a one-sentence answer: a cross-fertilization of Moroccan, Tunisian, Lebanese, Mediterranean, Arab and Jewish food cultures. But there were definitely some reoccurring themes during my week in Israel: olives, falafel, fresh vegetable salads, pita, filo dough pastries, and many bowls of hummus. Here are the best things I ate in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and beyond.

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,

When I left the restaurant Haj Kahil after lunch, I said to someone – 'That was the best day of my life.' When Erin, who was dining next to me, took a bite of the fried Halloumi cheese, her whole body softened, her eyes dimmed, and she looked as if she had been lulled into a trance. And when someone tried to talk to her,