In today’s era, everyone wants to be a brand. brand of what? It’s less important. The main thing is that they recognize you. And in the field of food, there is not and never was an old, valued, reliable and stable brand in Israel like Aharoni – a chef who rose above the celebrity chef culture to the rank of icon, even in the simplistic sense of the word: the ponytail, the eyebrows, the beard. The man has become an icon, and rightly so – as this is a chef who traditionally stays away from the trendy, flashy and Instagrammable. The world can become based on powdered nutrition, and Aharoni will continue on his way, opening another new brand under his name, doing it simply and well without being overly clever.
Aharoni’s butcher shop in Gani Tikva. Photography: Matan Sharon
In his current round, Aharoni has built his new elite butchery empire, which currently has two much-loved branches in Oppenheimer and Shenkin, from where he sells deli meat of an exceptional standard alongside excellent rotisserie chicken and two great chicken sandwiches. But a rumor has been circulating for some time, which, among other things, was based on Occasional stalls, which tells about a hamburger from Beit Aharoni. That’s how a brand is, your name goes before you. Aharoni meets the most American dish? It’s a piece of history. And now Aharoni has finally sat down his traveling hamburger, and for another story twist – to sample the burger in question you will have to set your sights on Gani Tikva, about half an hour from Tel Aviv, not including the mental distance.
As befits Tel Avivians, we got confused on the way and accidentally arrived at a disturbed residential neighborhood in Savion. After we opened our eyes in front of several palaces and realized that there was no way they were hiding a hamburger here, we recalculated the route and arrived at the Zim Urban complex in Gani Tikva – nine minutes from the castles of Savion, who knew? – which is the modern evolution of malls in large satellite cities. The extensive area makes it possible to open complexes of a type that we do not know in Tel Aviv, a type of open mall with a more meticulous collection of stores (less Honigman, more Delicatessen), and in the mid-day atmosphere of the mid-week, the feeling is almost American, in our Israeli way.
Aharoni’s butcher shop, from where he sells the hamburger, is hidden in the center of the complex, behind the escalators – and it was easy to find him, because Aharoni was standing at the entrance. I wish every chef restaurant would post their famous chef at the entrance, it would save time. While the chef was taking PR photos, we joined the line that stretched behind him (look for a bald spot in the photos – that’s me) and stared at the butcher/deli/rotisserie/hamburger space. The place is simply designed, and even from the mess and crowding of a hamburger launch, it provided a pleasant atmosphere. The line may seem a bit It’s long, but it’s mainly because most of it was made up of families, and I quickly went to choose from among the meals. Since I’ve already tasted his rotisserie chicken at the Shenkin branch, I focused only on the hamburger (NIS 75 for a meal that includes a side dish and a drink), and also took the intriguing chicken and cauliflower meatballs (3 -25 NIS) as a preliminary snack. I stood between the shelves of pasta and the jars of anchovies, and waited for my name to be called.
It took about twenty minutes, quite a bit for a hamburger, during which I stared at the hamburger production line that included no less than seven workers in the cramped space, a positive reaction to the launch line that had formed. The hamburgers are grilled in a special device that saves the need to turn it with the weight of a pressing upper part – like a huge pressure toaster for a burger – and probably schedules the cooking time. To the side was the assembly station, and all the children took advantage of the waiting time to gaze mesmerized at the worker who built the hamburgers for them. A magical moment for any child, but by this point I was already getting hungry enough to consider devouring one of them. If so, it’s hard for me to hold it against Aharoni. I assume that in the future, considering the nature of the neighborhood and the fact that there are currently no deliveries planned from here, the queue will be much smaller and the waiting time will also decrease.
Aharoni’s hamburger preparation station. Photography: Matan Sharon
In the end it came. The rumors, the trip, the excitement, the wait – and here it is in my hand, packed in a takeaway bag because there’s really no place to sit inside a butcher shop. On the other hand, a step and a half away, down the escalators, stood a pair of high tables for the pleasure of the shoppers, and there are enough spots to sit down for a quick meal nearby. Pierre, I didn’t hold back, I skipped the side dishes and hurried to bite into the main course. Just from holding the hamburger, and the feeling of the bun in your hand, two things are clear – this is a hamburger made from the best raw materials and products on the market, and this is a hamburger that does not try to be anything more than a hamburger. The bite confirmed the theory – the mixture of meats that came together in this patty is a dream of every carnivore, incredibly precise, almost devoid of seasoning or pretension beyond being the best patty it can be.
All the other components that make up this dish work in favor of that great patty, with the aioli gently tingling (although it didn’t feel like garlic aioli, despite what the cashier said), the vegetables and fruits are sliced to perfect minutes, very fresh and well arranged, and it’s also the first cheeseburger I’ve ever eaten The cheese side is placed down, which mixed its flavor with the aioli and vegetables and definitely added. It was all packed into a fluffy bun that somehow managed to hold on until the end, and the overall bite was great, as long as you’re not looking for something head-spinning and over-the-top for Instagram. Aharoni’s brand maintains its good name.
Fries, hamburger, small chicken patty. “Aharoni’s”. Photography: Matan Sharon
Only after satisfying the cravings for this great bite did I turn to the rest of the food – potatoes from the rotisserie, which were tasty but not something you couldn’t make with effort at home; Excellent fries, made in a boat shape and crispy to perfection; And the chicken meatballs, which at first seemed burnt on the outside, but the bite revealed that this was a deliberate choice. It would have been a great side snack, if we had received a sauce (and maybe also napkins and flatware?), but on their own they were a bit dry, even if tasty. And over all this very tasty meal, one question hovered – why here? Why not open the hamburger in the heart of Israel’s culinary center?
Well, the answer is as simple as this burger. We don’t need him. Tel Aviv is flooded with hamburgers, many of them excellent, and the competition is unbearable. Aharoni’s hamburger reminded me a lot, for example, of the Mitbar’s hamburger (although Aharoni wins in the patty section), and if not him, there were others. Aharoni really provides the highest level possible for this type of hamburger, but Tel Aviv and Tel Avivians will do without it. In Gani Tikva, on the other hand, he brings a new standard. Yes, also in relation to Savion’s castles.
“Aharoni’s – Butchery, Hamburger and Rotisserie”, Zim Urban Complex, Reit 1 Gani Tikva. Sunday-Thursday 11:00-22:00, Friday 10:00-16:00