My stomach (a.k.a. "The Beast") has a mind of it's own. When I travel I like to stick with the local cuisine but sometimes my cravings from home take precedence. Israel is culturally diverse country and has a burgeoning food culture. I was lucky enough to indulge in the local delicacies but I also had a hankering for familiar comfort foods, which were surprisingly easy to find and very affordable. My first few days were spent eating fruit, humus, cheese, tomatoes and cucumbers, even for breakfast. The emphasis on Israeli cuisine is on "fresh" and "healthy". Eventually after an initial internal struggle I succumbed and gave into the cravings being barked by "The Beast". I found a pizza place...Il Pizziaolo. The smell of the freshly cooked crust beckoned me.
I ordered a sun-dried tomato and olive pizza. It arrive piping hot and loaded with fresh mozzarella. It was absolute heaven even in the humid 90 degree weather. I came back here several times and on my last night in town. The staff was friendly and the pricing was great.
Il Pizziaolo
122 Ben yehuda
Tel Aviv
phone: 03-6093515
www.rest.co.il/sites/Default.asp?txtRestID=17
It's hard enough to try new sushi places in Los Angeles let alone outside of the US so I was not expecting much...let alone real crab. But I was pleasantly surprised.
I ordered a spicy tuna roll and a California roll (I never order these but get them when I am testing out a new place since they are hard to mess up). Both were tasty and satisfied my craving. The staff was really nice. They do delivery and takeout orders.
Atza Sushi Bar
128 Ben-Yehuda St.
Tel Aviv
Phone 03 527 0017
www.atza.co.il
Another great find that I came across during my trip was a beach side lounge with tasty food (I ordered fried calamari...it was "fresh") and strong drinks. The place is called Gordo and it is fabulous.
They apparently serve breakfast and host events up to 500 people. This is a great place to lounge, people watch, escape and watch the sun as it sets.
Gordo
Gordon Beach
Tel Aviv
Phone: 03-5293929
