Travel to Zichron Yaakov and review of Nili Restaurant

My mother is visiting from Florida for 10 days - yay! Yesterday we had a lovely day trip to the scenic and relaxing Zichron Yaakov and Ramat Hanadiv. If you are staying in Tel Aviv, or anywhere along Israel's train route, Zichron Yaakov is easy to get to. The train ride is surprisingly pleasant and the system is easy to use without any of the hassles of air travel or the uncertainty of buses. From the Binyamina train station, cross the street and take the #70 bus to the last stop.

In Zichron Moshe, we went to the First Aliya Museum, about the Jewish immigrants of the 1880's, and we walked along the pedestrian mall section of Hameyasdim Street. We had an outstanding lunch at Nili (kosher mehadrin). The presentation, atmosphere, food, and service was all excellent. I wasn't terribly excited by the sushi menu until my mom brought my attention to the Special Vegetarian - tamago, shitake, kampyo takuan wrapped in sweet potato and avocado. It turned out to be the surprise highlight of the meal - sweet, soft, and fresh. We also ordered the portobello mushroom appetizer with roasted pepper and goat cheese. I loved the gentle crispness formed around the circles of lightly roasted goat cheese. I splurged on tagliattele alfredo with fresh salmon.

A Kosher Cafe with Atmosphere

My husband and I shared a uniquely pleasant lunch today, the third anniversary of our immigration to the Holy Land. My husband chose the location - Cafe Hagiva (just a few bus stops past my daughter's school, where we had a meeting this morning). The outside looks like an old warehouse, but the inside is spacious, with post-modern art, and a large bar. An eclectic mix of heavy wood chairs and tables fills the dining hall and trails through the sparse grove out back.

The weather was perfect, so we took our chances and sat outdoors. (I can't stand cigarette smoke!) We had the most pleasant meal I can ever recall.

Sufganiot Gallery and Ode to a Great Mocha

My family took our first ever family vacation last week. We rented an apartment in Jerusalem for five days and four nights. ( I would highly recommend At Home in Israel for apartment rentals.) After the restaurant we had planned to go to turned into a sushi bar, we wandered into Shosh Cafe.

The restaurant and menu looks like your average Israeli dairy restaurant/cafe. However, the ingredients, flavor, and presentation had that extra something you don't get from a chain. All the food was delicious, but what really stood out was the REAL mocha. I think cafe mocha should be a cross between good cappuccino/cafe latte and good hot chocolate, but it is usually only one or neither. It should be based on good espresso and good chocolate. I've had many good "cappuccinos" and many great "shoko-ham"s (hot chocolate), but never the two shall meet... until today. Now I've only been to Shosh Cafe once, so I can't promise it wasn't a fluke. Maybe the barista was just in a good mood and tossed some extra chocolate in my drink, but this was good espresso with steamed milk and real chocolate. The milk was hot enough to melt the chocolate and the proportions were perfect. Maybe Jerusalem just has higher standard for their hot drinks.

The first day of Hanuka I took my kids and a friend to the "big mall" and the "big park." I was overwhelmed with the variety of sufganiot, filled donuts, on sale. All the pictures are from English Cake, a bakery chain with a store in the mall.

A walk in Tel Aviv, lunch at Armando

I had a lovely day today with my guest. We began by heading through Shuk HaCarmel, the crowded outdoor market in the center of Tel Aviv. Next door to the shuk is an area packed with fabric, notions, and trimmings stores, were there is a large arts and crafts fair held every Tuesday and Friday. When our tummies got bored of fabric and crafts, we headed down Allenby Street and made a right on the Tayelet, the promenade along the beach. It was worth the walk!

I'm a sucker for all you can eat salad spreads. At Armando, included in the price of an entree are 16 salads, bread, and a surprise bowl of fruit for dessert. Yes, I said sixteen!

Upon our waiter's recommendation, I ordered the European Sea Bass baked in rock salt (no, it's not salty!) and my friend got grilled Seabream. Both fish were delicious, fresh, moist, and tasty. However, the "architecture" of my baked bass was easier to navigate. It can take a little practice to navigate a whole fish. (For a tour, watch five and a half minutes into the first video on Fish: Dress, Bake, Eat.) Or take me out to lunch and I'll take out the bones for you; but I might use my fingers!

I'm glad we sat at a table for four, or we never could have fit all that food. The waiter placed the potatoes right on top of the other salads!

Below: Clockwise from top left, spicy carrots, roasted red peppers, shredded beets, eggplant (with other veggies or something, really yummy), spicy cooked beets, and shredded carrots.

For the Love of Goats

Sometime in elementary school I decided I wanted a baby goat as a pet. Was it on the visit with my aunt and cousins to a farm in New Jersey where we got to hold ducklings, chicks, chickens, and kid goats? I remember how special I felt being the only kid in the family big enough to hold these adorable little kids. Maybe it was the family trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina where we purchased ice cream cones full of goat food, before entering a trail of tourists trying to avoid being attacked by goats.

Since then, I've always held a flame for goats. But, until I have space and time for goats, I will settle for making our household favorite - goat yogurt cheese with olives, crocheting with mohair, and reading to my kids from the copy of Gregory, the Terrible Eater that my grandmother gave me when I was a kid.

Check out my photo essay and restaurant review on Facebook and don't forget to "Like" Cooking Outside the Box to see links I share and what I've been up to in the kitchen between blog posts.

Jerusalem Vacation cont. - Two more reviews

If it sounds like I'm focusing too much on the food, it's partly because this is a food blag, and partly because I really like food.  So where did we leave off...

Tuesday night we ate at an overpriced Asian restaurant - Sheyan.   The atmosphere was lovely.  The service was great.  Like all the restaurants we saw, they had an English menu.  The food was not much better than you could get at a take-out place like Sini Speed for a lot less money.  (See my review and take-out tips.)  We paid 300 NIS ($88) for two wanton soups, two little cups of hot Saki, and two entrees.  There was nothing wrong with the food, it just didn't have the subtle gourmet flavors I would expect from such a restaurant.  I did see some very pretty things coming from the kitchen, though.

On our last day we worked up an appetite all morning to we could get Belgian Waffles for a late lunch before heading home.  We stopped at Katzefet, where we found a nice selection of ice cream, soft serve "bio" frozen yogurt, and an array of shake ingredients.  For 25 NIS ($7.30) you get a large Belgian waffle with all the syrup and topping you want, plus whip cream and a scoop of ice cream, any flavor.

Balabasta Festival

Food, music, art, and everything in between - what more could you ask for?  If you will be in Jerusalem this July, check out the Balabasta Festival, every night in Machne Yehuda Market.  You will surely find something to make you smile!
Here is a video showing the happenings in the shuk, plus the 'usual' things being sold in the shuk.


Balabasta Video Link

You may also enjoy my Jerusalem restaurant reviews: Rimon & Gabriela and Sheyan & Katzefet or my photo essay of Shvil Izzim Dairy Restaraunt posted on Facebook. Don't forget to 'Like' Cooking Outside the Box!

Two Jerusalem Dairy Restaurants

Thanks to my my brave and generous in-laws, my husband and I are on vacation right now!  I'm still reminiscing about our gustatory delights yesterday, so I thought I'd share.

Lemonana

For lunch we went to Rimon, which a friend had highly recommended.  It has a great location in the Mamilla shopping center with a balcony overlooking Jerusalem city center.  The large indoor and outdoor seating was very full on this summer Sunday afternoon, and thank G-d, there was a large outdoor non-smoking area.  Unfortunately, the smokers got the best tables along the terrace.  The menu was pretty standard for an Israeli dairy cafe.  The pesto in my husband's quesadilla was excellent.  I would definitely recommend anything with pesto. 

Ordering Inside the Box

This meal was way too deliciously indulgent not to immortalize on my blog.  And to get all this kosher Asian food for only 100 NIS, approximately $28, is a real treat for our family.  

These two platters could easily serve three people.  But you could stretch it even further.

If you feel a need to indulge in take-out Chinese or Pizza, consider adding a green salad or Islaeli salad.  (Israeli salad is generally chopped tomato and cucumber with lemon, olive oil, and salt.)

I can't keep my family away from greasy convenience foods once in a while.  However, there's no reason the whole meal has to be completely devoid of nutritional value.  When did bread sticks become the appropriate side dish for pizza or pasta?  Order one pizza and make a salad while you're waiting for the delivery guy to show up.  Since a super-cheap and delicious pizza store opened up near our house, we order pizza almost once a month.  My kids each chow down on their first slice, but don't get to have another half slice until they finish their salad.  It gives kids, and grown-ups alike, a chance to realize maybe they're not hungry anymore.  You can even serve a salad or vegetable soup before the greasy main course arrives.  This is also a great tip if one spouse is picking up dinner on the way home from work.  Give your kids a head start on their veggies.  Then they'll be washed and sitting pretty at the table when dad or mom walks in the door.

 

Now that I've given you the health food speech, I can tell you our dirty little secret.  My husband and I ate the whole thing!  FYI, its true what they say about limiting your late evening meals to avoid sleep trouble.  We both had trouble falling asleep after our little gorge-fest.