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Lifestyle I Food

From Poland to Ethiopia, to Georgia to Morocco: the mosaic of Israeli society is never more vibrant than in the kitchen. Here’s a selection of the best Israeli restaurants that celebrate the joys of traditional Jewish fare with dishes like kreplach soup, pastilla, and khinkali - one people, a thousand flavors / By Sharon Ben-David Tradition on a plate: 5 restaurants that celebrate traditional Jewish cuisine

Photo: Dror Menachem

Ewa Safi | The soul of Morocco

The first thing you think of when you hear the word Morocco is “charm” – the charm of its markets, its spices, its food, and most of all, its vibrant authenticity. Restaurant Ewa Safi (meaning “enough already” in Moroccan slang) is located in a beautiful building in the heart of Tel Aviv’s picturesque neighborhood of Neve Tzedek. Owners Miko and Shimon Barak, two brothers, asked their Moroccan-born mother Sulika to join them on their adventure and head the kitchen. She gladly accepted and created a menu that combines all the traditional flavors and specificities of the Moroccan table, with the vibrancy of contemporary Israeli cuisine. As in typical Moroccan fashion, dinner here begins with a colorful platter of dips and salads, and goes on with either a delicious stew, fish cakes, pastilla, grilled meat, couscous or tajine, the absolute musts of the Moroccan table. Tradition and modernity superbly intertwine here, making for a truly memorable culinary experience. kosher. ewasafi.co.il

Photo: Shani Brill

Founded in 1945, Keton has been serving up traditional Eastern European Jewish fare to the people of Tel Aviv and its cultural elite for almost 80 years. All the Israeli greats have eaten here: from legendary theatre actors to beloved singers, songwriters, poets, and politicians. All have graced the tables of the restaurant’s humble dining space, where kreplach soup with handmade noodles, gefilte fish, lokshen kugel, and all the other staples of the Ashkenazi kitchen, are still today, like all those years Keton | Tel Aviv’s Jewish bistro

ago, lovingly served, noon and night. The names of some of the restaurant’s famous diners of the past proudly adorn its walls, like a touching reminder of the vibrancy of the city’s cultural life. Some have left inscriptions and autographs, like artist Menashe Kadishman who wrote: “all of us are homeless, and Keton reminds us of the home we lost”. Very little has changed here over the years, and certainly not the menu. This is the place to go when soul food is the only food that’ll do. keton.co.il

36 ATMOSPHERE OCTOBER 2024