A roundup of kosher restaurants and take out in Sarona.

Updated May 2021

People are always asking about kosher food in Sarona, especially because there is a high turnover of restaurants and shops in Sarona, so it is hard to keep track. Many of the kosher places that were there when they first opened, no longer exist and others have tried and failed.  I will try to keep this updated but please take that into consideration.  If you want to be sure, feel free to message me or ask in the group Restaurant Club Israel.

I have not included exact locations as it is hard to do that but I will distinguish between Sarona Market, which is the indoor market area and Sarona which is the outdoor complex. Instead of creating my usual list of recommended places, this post includes all kosher places.

KOSHER RESTAURANTS

• Pita Basta has a number of interesting items on the menu.  I normally order the Heavy Pita (NIS 34) – not a mistake in translation! – which is grilled chicken liver, silan, lemon sauce, tahina and other delicious toppings. They also served a dessert Pita Loti (NIS 10), a crispy grilled pita with nutty chocolate and banana – sounds delicious!
  

  

  

• There is something about a great rotisserie chicken that never gets old. The Rotisserie Chicken Club has opened its third branch in Sarona Market.  As well as grilled chicken, they also serve chicken salad, chicken sandwich, sweet potato chips and roasted potatoes.
  

  

  
• Rachel BaSdera is a gourmet dairy sandwich stall imported from Jerusalem. Each sandwich is crafted with love and topped with carmelized tahina and silan.
• Despite the name, Arais has a full grilled meat menu with some more interesting cuts of beef like Denver Cut and Picanha, as well as various types of arais. The restaurant is located on the outside of Sarona Market, with plenty of outdoor seating. Here is the full Arais English Menu.
• Tandoor is a meat street food restaurant, serving meat skewers cooked in a Tandoor oven.
• Wok to Walk is an Asian noodle stall with the option to build your own noodle and rice dishes. Delivery via Wolt.
• Located in the basement of a Templar building, Whiskey Bar (Hashgacha Pratit) has walls lined with over 1000 types of whiskey, but it is still enjoyable for non-whiskey drinkers like myself. The setting and décor are very unique and there are plenty of large tables, so it is an ideal place for dinner with friends, but don’t expect much in the way of service.

•  Hummus Eliyahu is a chain but the hummus is very good quality and not your typical chain.
• Paradiso is a typical Israeli dairy café with the usual selection of breakfasts, sandwiches, salads, pizza, pasta and fish – basically, they do everything OK and nothing that well.
• Mixi Salad Bar is a kosher salad bar with a great selection of fresh vegetables, grains and toppings. The medium is NIS 38 and the large is NIS 42, both include bread. They also serve toast for NIS 32.
• When Sarona first opened, Biga (Mehadrin) was the only option for a kosher sit-down meal and the menu was interesting, the setting quaint and the service was what you expect from a mid-range cafe.  Over the years it has got worse and worse and not only is the food not good, but the service is also terrible.  It takes a lot for me to walk out of a restaurant but I walked out of Biga without even eating.  I went back not long after, for a team lunch and we all left unhappy and frustrated. My advice would be to avoid Biga but some people seem to like it so I have included it here.

KOSHER SHOPS & SNACKS

As well as the restaurants mentioned above, there are also several places in Sarona Market for takeaway snacks and desserts.

• Home-made healthy ice-lollies in a variety of flavors including vegan and sugar-free options. Unusual flavors of Paletas include Pistachio Malabi, Vietnamese Coffee, Mango Chili, Mexican Chocolate and Super Spirulina.
• A branch of the popular Halva Kingdom in the Machaneh Yehudah shuk, the Sarona Market store also includes a sesame mill at the back so you can see the fresh tahina being made. The store has a selection of around 100 flavors of halva and they will normally let you try before you buy.  My personal favorites are the coffee and Belgian chocolate flavors and they recently started selling pre-sealed jars of halva so it can be easily transported. They also sell various savory and sweet flavored-tahina – the chocolate tahina is delicious and makes a healthy alternative to chocolate spread.
• Le Boucher is a well laid out, immaculately clean butcher with an impressive selection of meats, including veal schnitzel, asado and osso buco, as well as pre-made burgers and kebabs.

KOSHER – NO CERTIFICATE

There are a number of places in Sarona Market that claim to use only kosher dairy or parev ingredients but as the stores are open on Shabbat, they do not have a kosher certificate.  While this is not an option for everybody, I am including this information for those who are happy with this distinction.

Included in this category are Gulis who make crispy dough balls that are drizzled with a choice of hot chocolate sauces and various other crunchy and sweet toppings. Cookies from Cookie Bucket and freshly made items at  Max Brenner (pre-packaged chocolates have a hechsher).

Here are other posts about Sarona:

• Dining in Sarona
• Quick Bites in Sarona Market

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