Fly to Colombia: Taste of Colombia
It is hard to say that Colombian cuisine succeeded in breaking through in Israel. What to do, the Israeli audience likes Argentinian steaks more, and only in recent years has there been a resurgence of the Mexican wing – but when it comes to South American food, we can’t get much further than Impedance. That’s why the new place, which boasts the very foreign name “Taste of Colombia” (and more in English!) is so interesting. Because of this, and because of the story behind it – a Colombian girl comes on vacation in Israel, gets stuck here during the corona virus, misses the food at home, starts preparing it and selling it to the neighbors, falls in love with an American basketball player from Maccabi Haifa who is also the brother of an NBA star and sets up a restaurant with him. You know, that classic story. In any case, at the food level, you can order here Arapas with spicy chorizo sausage, meat soup, grilled meat, fried whole gad and of course, of course, fried impedance that made us shout “Ola!”, and then there was such a strange silence in the restaurant. Leave, unpleasant. for further details
Taste of Colombia. Photo: from Instagram
Fly to Thailand: Kitchen 94
Tomas Zohar’s JAI food truck, which was located in the DNA complex of Azrieli Mall, is going out into the wider world with the natural development – a pop-up. That’s how it is, now restaurants are like Pokemon. Thomas is making the leap forward as part of the culinary project Kitchen 94, a series of pop-ups from the creator of the DNA group. Yes, a group has been formed here, and it seems that they are cohesive – every few months, restaurants will be added or changed in Kitchen 94, offering kosher menus (after lunch) and extremely diverse food. At Jai’s pop-up you can order unripe mango and tempura fish salad with sticky rice, grilled chicken steak in red curry glaze and coconut milk with sticky rice and Thai salad; Hand-crafted curry chicken with Thai okra, lychee and peanuts and jasmine rice; Long-cooked asado with egg noodles in yellow curry from Northern Thailand. for further details
JAI in Kitchen 94 (photo by Asaf Karla)
Hit the tip of the Italian boot: Calabria
Chef Benzi Arbel (“Kaffra Miu”) opens his new and talked-about corner that deals with everything south of Rome – that is, spicy, fried and just in time for the arrival of autumn. As one of our most beloved chefs (hey, remember the bliss of the bliss meeting?), you can count on Arbel to bring an original twist on an old taste, and his expertise in Italian pays off with Calabria’s dishes, which include fried Montanara pizza, Calabrese soufflés, white risotto, rings Crispy squid, handmade pastas and lots of water on the side to wash down all that wonderful spiciness. Bona, this spitz has a kick. for further details
Bongiorno Principsa. Calabria (photo by Jacob Blumenthal)
Another 3 that are not necessarily restaurants, not completely new, but without a doubt worth a worldwide visit
Another visit to southern Italy: Panzerotto
Similar to Calabria, Coco’s Panzerotto (yes, that’s the name) offers a visit to southern Italy, but this time it’s an optional visit – a hole in the wall on King George, right next to Magen David square, where you can grab what we totally defined as “Fried Pizza Sambusk”. There were voices of protest from Italians, but we don’t understand Italian. Among the fillings you will find here: Classic (tomato sauce and mozzarella), Cacho a Pepe (pecorino and black pepper), Melanzana (eggplants with parmesan) and also one with vegan cheese. for further details
Panzerotto. Photography: Yael Stockman
Between France and Vietnam: Ban Mi 13
Like, not really between France and Vietnam, because it would be in Pakistan. But this is a dish that connects the two countries (thanks, colonialism!) – the covering is a French baguette, the filling is a mixture of beef pate, meat or vegan filling and a wide variety of vegetables. At Ban Mi 13, a small stand that opened in Levinsky, they only prepare it. Our street food reviewer called the sandwich they make “simply a work of art”, and that’s all we need to run to Levinsky and feel like Vietnam. It wouldn’t be the first time. for further details
Who came to Ban Mi? Ban Mi 13 (photo by Jacob Blumenthal)
Go away bro, you didn’t understand India: Gurkha Kitchen
And now we’ll just let our food critic tell you about this restaurant, which has already gained quite a reputation among food lovers: “Gurka Kitchen may not be a gourmet kitchen, but it is a great restaurant in its essence – a place where you come, get good food with great flavors, with Sweet service and at a funny price in Tel Aviv terms. A small, pleasant and tasty jump abroad.” That’s all that is needed. for further details
Gorka Kitchen (Photo: PR)