11.24.2009

Breakfast: Saquella and Benedicts



Saquella (46 King George St.)
Fungi Breakfast. Mushroom omelette with Israeli salad and loaf of warm bread. Spreads: Feta with red peppers, laboneh, cream cheese, tuna, guacamole, tzaziki, olives, butter, and raspberry jam.




A typical Israeli breakfast usually consists of: Israeli salad http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_salad, eggs (usually an omelette), bread, and various spreads (cheeses, butter etc.). Israelis enjoy breakfasts sooo much that most cafes around Tel Aviv will serve breakfast all day. Saquella is a cafe across the street from my apartment where I can safely say I have had breakfast at least 10 times since moving here. All of their omelettes come with a loaf of warm bread, spreads, israeli salad, a juice and a coffee and are more than enough for two people to share.


Benedicts (29 Rothschild (& Allenby) & 171 Ben Yehuda)
Warm Bread. Spreads: Chocolate, raspberry jam, and butter. (Complimentary)
Benedicts- bread
Eggs Benedict
Benedicts-eggs benedict 2
Israeli Breakfast. Cheese Omelette with israeli salad. Spreads: Tuna, cream cheese with chives, cheese with scallions, and olives.
Benedicts-cheese omlette

Banana Pancakes with coconut milk, coconut flakes, chocolate, and maple syrup
Benedicts- bananna pancakes with coconut milk and coconut flakes
Pancakes were the highlight of the meal. Thick but with a light/airy texture. Everything else was pretty good. I personally think Benedicts is a little overrated but I am willing to go back.






-Sabrina Idels

11.04.2009

Hamburgers: Wolfnights, Agadir, King George, and Moses

In only two months of living in Tel Aviv I have tried several memorable hamburgers. While the burger and fries is a classic American dish, Tel Aviv offers a wide assortment of multicultural cuisine, including some burger joints that will not make you feel guilty for eating American food in Israel.
Wolfnigts
1. Wolfnights (Leilenblum & Nachlat Benyamin)

I have already dined here twice and both times I ordered the “Wolfnights Special” (which means it must be good because I always try something new when I go to a restaurant for the second time). This very special all beef burger is served with the standard tomato, lettuce, onion, white cheddar cheese, bacon, and one key ingredient: “שום” or “shoom” (delicious house garlic mayonnaise). French fries are thin and perfectly crispy, somewhat McDonalds-esque but better. Make sure to get a side of garlic mayo.


2. Agadir(1 Nachlat Benyamin St.) http://www.agadir.co.il/
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I recommend the “Diana” this is a 50% beef and 50% lamb patty, aioli, tomatoes, sauteed onions, and pickled lemon. I added lettuce, goat cheese, and bacon. If this is your first visit to Agadir get the Diana, the extra fat in the lamb adds a lot of flavor and a nice juicy element to the meat. I have also tried the 330g “Agadir” burger, which was also very good.
Onion loaf: my mouth is still watering thinking about this. Best fried onion ring concoction in Israel.
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Home fries: fried to perfection! Diced potatoes topped with a sweet chili sauce with a hint of spicy…AMAZING!
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French fries are excellent if you like thin fries. Similar to Wolfnights.

3. King George (20 Hamelech George St.)
*Best burger for your Shek*

For those of you dining on a budget, King George is the place to go for an affordable, large, juicy burger with all the right fixings. I got the standard burger with mushrooms and fried onions. The dish was essentially a large sauté of small onion rings mixed with mushrooms with a side of burger and fries…mmm. French fries were mediocre. Thick steak fries. If you’re into steak fries they’re ok, but I’ve had better.

Moses
4. Moses (35 Rothschild Blvd.) http://www.mosesrest.co.il/english/Moses%2BRestaurant
Overrated. Moses and Agadir are arguably the two most well known hamburger places in Tel Aviv. Since moving here I have heard from several sources that Moses burger was even better than Agadir. So when I sat down to this flawless decadent burger I had pretty high expectations for what I was about to stuff my face with. I had the classic Moses burger with cheese, egg, mushrooms, onion, lettuce, and tomato. While the burger looked great, the meat tasted like a grill and was wayyy too peppery. The bun was also much too large for the patty, making it very difficult to eat. Unfortunately the fries were not good enough to make up for the burger. I do not recommend Moses burger.



-Sabrina Idels

11.03.2009

Roladin Doughnuts

Roladin doughnuts 2
From left to right: chocolate filled doughnut with chocolate frosting topped with sprinkles; dulce de leche filling with chocolate glaze; vanilla creme filling with white chocolate glaze.

Roladin doughnuts 4

The winner: Chocolate sprinkles with chocolate filling. The others didn't have enough chocolate.



-Sabrina Idels