News and Reviews on the Foodie Scene in Israel for October.

As always, there is news from the foodie scene in Israel. Even though restaurants are still closed for dining in and can only offer delivery and take away, new places are still continuing to open.

I wonder if only in Israel people are crazy enough to open new restaurants during a global pandemic? The innovative nature of Israelis is not exclusive to the tech world and we are seeing some restauranteurs applying the same innovation to their businesses. The latest trend in the food scene is virtual restaurants that offer delivery from an industrial kitchen. It will be interesting to see if this concept continues or if it is just a temporary solution to cope with the current challenges.

Here is a summary of the recent foodie news in Israel:

Kosher 

La Mozarella Italian dairy restaurant in Gilo has opened a new branch in Modiin on Emek Haella.

Tel Aviv foodies should be happy to hear that Teller Bakery has opened a new branch in Shuk Hanamal. My favorite bread is the blueberry and walnut sourdough, but all their bread is great.

Not Kosher

Colombo is a new food venture in Kibbutz Lohamei Haghetaot near Akko. The restaurant is named after the Chef and Owner Uri Columbo who was previously a chef at the Rooftop Restaurant in the Mamilla Hotel and Machneyuda in Jerusalem. The bistro-style menu includes many comfort food dishes like mac & cheese, paella, cheeseburger and lamb meatballs.

Doda Cafe is a new cafe in the Neve Sharet neighborhood of Tel Aviv. The menu offers sandwiches, salads, coffee, cakes and biscuits all available for delivery with online ordering.

El Terrace Restaurant is a chef restaurant in Herzliya Pituach overlooking the sea. Menu items include smoked whole fish, smoked whole chicken stuffed with rice and meat and smoked hamburger. The restaurant opened for delivery only to Herzliya, Kfar Saba, Hod Hasharon and Ramat Hasharon.

El Terrace Coffee Shop serves sandwiches, pastries and cakes and also delivers.

Havshuk is a small grill bar in the Carmel Shuk. Interesting dishes include Fattush Salad with bone marrow and Veal Cheek Shishbarak. Delivery is available via Wolt or 10bis.

Hummus Haachim has opened on Bialik Street in Ramat Gan. As well as various hummus dishes, they also serve sabich and falafel.

Jamila Jamil and Kukuritza are new delivery-only services to Haifa and surrounding areas. The food is prepared in a central kitchen that has no dairy, the meat is kosher but they are open on Shabbat so they do not have supervision. The Jamila Jamil menu focuses on meat sandwiches including burgers, schnitzel, smoked goose breast, as well as some salads and vegan options (order online). The Kukuritza menu focuses on all things chicken, with fried chicken, roast chicken, schnitzel, wings and a chicken burger (order online).

Junior Pizza is a new pizza parlor in Rehavia in Jerusalem from the owner of Burger Room, Talbieh and Wine Bar. The pizzas are extra-large (2-3 people for a meal), with some interesting toppings including brie cheese, tartufo, maple-glazed pumpkin, spicy chicken, Bolognese and calamari.

Lucia is a new Italian restaurant from the Landwer Group. The Ein Shemer offers delivery to Hadera, Givat Ada, Caesarea, Zichron Yaacov, Pardes Hanna and other nearby areas, order online. The group also has a branch in Tel Aviv and plans to open branches around the country.

Mr & Mrs Burger is a burger restaurant in Atlit near Haifa which serves kosher burgers and is closed on Shabbat but there is no supervision.

Nadav VeDaniel is a new Thai delivery pop-up in Tel Aviv, from the finalists of the Israeli TV show MKR. The extensive Thai menu includes gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan dishes. Delivery is available via Wolt.

Noola is an Indian food delivery service from Nor Miller. She used to host Indian cooking workshops and meals in her home and now puts her talents to providing Indian feasts by delivery on Fridays only. Noola delivers to Ramat Hasharon, Kfar Saba, Raanana, Herzliya, Hod Hasharon, Petah Tikva and Tel Aviv areas. Order via WhatsApp.

Poppy Pizza in Netanya is a California style pizza delivery service that will eventually be a restaurant. They also serve salads, desserts and have a gin and tonic menu. Delivery is to Netanya and surrounding areas, here is the online menu and order form.

Tokyo Club is a new sushi and cocktail bar from the popular Tel Aviv restaurant Social Club. For now, they are preparing sushi trays for takeaway and delivery via Wolt.

Thai Box is a new Thai delivery service in Tel Aviv, with delivery to Ramat Hasharon, Tel Aviv, Jaffa, Raanana, Kfar Saba, Rosh HaAyin, Petah Tikva, Ramat Gan and Givatayim. Full menu and online order form.

Closures

Cafe Michael, Jerusalem has closed but Michaela bakery and deli will continue.

Lelo gluten-free cafe in Tel Aviv.

Other Israel Foodie News

Gluless is a gluten-free store in Jerusalem in Tzomet Oranim.

Partigiano Roman-style pizza on Ben Yehuda in Jerusalem has closed for the month of November but is due to reopen in December.

Sushi Rehavia on Emek Refaim has moved to the corner of Masaryk Street. The city center and Har Hotzvim branches are both closed for renovations.

Zalman’s Hotdog (Mehadrin) is opening a third branch in Shuk Machane Yehuda where Pepitos used to be. In the meantime, Zalman’s is open for delivery.

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