Upcoming Sufganiot Crawl 2010

Sufganiot season has FINALLY returned.

This year I plan to לטעום (taste) as many flavors and bakeries as my anti-lactose stomach will not punish me for.  Prepare yourselves for a full report on each new Roladin variety my upon my return to Tel Aviv in just 4 days.

Until then I will leave you with these mouth watering images to moisten your palettes.

Brasserie M&R

Brasserie M&R  Ibn Gvirol 70, 03-6967111 

In the last seven months I’ve had the chance to try some of the best restaurants in Tel Aviv. After many plates and tastes, however, one of my new favorites is the Brasserie, a traditional French bistro style restaurant, conveniently open 24/7, making it accessible for everyone from the casual luncher, to the couple looking for a nice dinner, to the Tel Avivian late night snacker. I am especially partial to it because of its remarkable resemblance to my old stomping grounds (www.sardinemadison.com).

Not only does Brasserie’s lunch and dinner menu offer a wonderful selection of classic French dishes, their weekend brunch is one of the best in the city.  They have separate menus for their special late night menu, and weekday breakfast, which is essentially identical to the weekend brunch, albeit with different prices.

I have yet to try everything on the menu, so I can only provide recommendations based on what I have tried.

Recommendations

Appetizers:

• French onion soup – Excellent. Brasserie is known for their French onion soup
• Steak tar tar - Excellent! Wow. Tied with Agadir Embassy for best in town.
• Tuna tar tar  - Delish. Was a special, not listed on menu.
• Chѐvre chaud - Good/standard. Warm pieces of goat crustinis topped with goat cheese on a salad.
• Blinis - One large pancake topped with greens, gravalax and crème fraiche.  Same sized portion as on the brunch menu.
• Sea Bream tar tar - Good if you like cilantro
• Frites (fries) are my personal favorite.

* Food for thought.  For those of you who detest cilantro (like myself) and do not already know this—corriander is the same thing as cilantro and כוסברה pronounced “coosbarah”.  DON’T order the sea bream tar tar if you’re not into coriander.

               

Main courses:

• Porterhouse 400g - Delicious, juicy, perfectly cooked (we ordered it medium-rare). Just enough for two. Served with a healthy portion of bone marrow.
• Burger – Very tasty burger, not the best in town, but good enough to order  again…comes     with those delectable FRIES!
• Poulet Rôti - Very juicy and flavorful halved roast chicken. Served with whole cloves of roasted garlic, seasoned with tarragon.
• Seafood mélange (special) – A seafood assortment (shrimp, calamari, mussels, and crab) served in a steaming hot pan with spicy panko crumbs, fennel, and a flavorful white wine sauce. If you’re into shellfish I highly recommend any of their seafood dishes.
• Spaghetti Bolognaise – Haven’t ordered it myself but I have heard it’s excellent.

Desserts:

• Cheesecake - Delish, but still not as good as Rothschild’s Kitchen.

Brunch: Brunch at Brasserie is one of my favorites in town. All main dishes are served with two drinks AND one of these drinks can be a cocktail (Brasserie is one of the few places in town I have been able to find a Bloody Mary).  The bread basket is filled with an assortment of freshly baked rolls and pastries from Brasserie’s bakery (“The Bakery”) located next door.

• Croque Madame - Mmmmmmmmmm.  So delicious.  Super cheesy with just the right amount of Ham (sorry hashem).  All in all, this is definitely one of their best brunch offerings.  For those of you with sensitive stomachs fear not, the bathrooms at Brasserie are extremely pleasant and very private. :)
• Oeufs Norvѐgiens – Eggs Benedict with lox. Good.
• Millefeuilles – This was good,
• Blinis – One of my personal favorite brunch options. (See appetizers above)
• Eggs Benedict – Love it, I recommend this.
• Israeli Breakfast – Ok. Very standard, a few cheese spreads and eggs of your choice.

Poulet Rôti (Roasted Chicken)

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A Brief Re-introduction

After a 7 month hiatus I have decided to overcome my ADD driven procrastination and start food blogging again.  Since Andrea has returned to Canada I will be writing reviews solo. I will try to keep them as concise as possible.

Hope you enjoy!

Fro Yo: Tamara & Moo

Confession.  One of my biggest fears before moving to Israel was that I would not be able to find a quality place to get my daily fro yo fix.

As a native valley girl I did have somewhat high expectations, considering the recent influx of novelty soft serve frozen yogurt places in Los Angeles (i.e. Pinkberry, Yogurtland, Red Mango, Menchies etc.).  While Tel Aviv could use a place like Yogurtland or Menchies that offer endless self serve flavors and toppings at around .30 cents an ounce, the city does feature a decent selection of refreshing all-natural frozen yogurt joints with fresh fruits and special Israeli chocolate, cereal and cookie toppings.
Tamara (Corner of Ben Yehuda & Gordon)

The wooden swings and charming decor create a warm, welcoming environment for what is in my opinion the BEST plain/natural fro yo place in Tel Aviv.  When rating natural frozen yogurt I personally believe that the texture of the yogurt itself is of upmost importance.  The cheaper places usually use a powder which produces an icy consistency while the better places (Pinkberry or Red Mango) use actual yogurt to create a creamier texture. Tamara offers an ideal balance between light and creamy…Not too rich but still not as bad as the little knock off joints around here where the yogurt tastes like some gross mixture of ice and powder. 

TOPPINGS. This adorable little yogurt boutique also boasts a vast assortment of perfectly ripe fruits (selections are seasonal) and other tasty toppings.
     Fruits: mango, pomegranate, dates, figs, strawberries, bananas, pineapple, kiwi, apple, oranges to name a few.

     Other: oreos, granola, nuts, and a bunch of different kinds of Israeli chocolate.  If you’re feeling really crazy get a scoop of hot Ferrero Rocher chocolate sauce....It will not disappoint.

 Moo (Ibn Gvriol, Dizengoff)

A somewhat more convenient, second-rate version of Tamara.  Yogurt is not as tasty, and wayy less topping options.  Fruit is also either too overripe and mushy or not ripe enough.