Snob, have you been to the YA INN Hotel yet? Few and only individuals of virtue are the Israelis who got to know the wine and culinary scene that is developing in Eilat. Few, not because it is hidden from the eyes of those who descend to the south, but mainly because in recent years the attractiveness of Eilat as a holiday stronghold for romantic and young couples who are not of the age of Panjoya is declining. It can be said, perhaps rightly, that the southern city has not in its many years been able to produce a worthy alternative when it comes to “other” vacations and at reasonable prices, unlike what happens just a few miles east and even south of it in Sinai or Aqaba, not to mention Greek and Turkish vacations.
But we are not dealing with vacations, and certainly not with such vacations that you load the whole family and children with you and look for some huge facility that throws them up and up so that they scream in someone else’s ears. We are here this time to tell you the almost hidden secret of Eilat, the one known only to those who understand, and we sometimes reach it even on a round trip flight that day.
We do not know if you have heard of “Eilat Wines”, but the wine shop run by Eran Les and his wife Dolly from 1999 is not a regular wine shop. Over the years they have become marketers and distributors to all the hotels and restaurants and have developed almost “under the radar” their hospitality in the place. Eilatim, and friends of Eilatim, and all kinds of wine people and restaurants who came to the southern city for one reason or another (including the writer of these lines), received a recommendation from someone who knows, and visited the place. It changed the prejudice that some of us have about the southern city of Israel. Speaking of people who would come there that day and come back, Shaul Evron, the restaurateur and owner of the mythological food section of the “Hadashot” newspaper, was one of those, and many followed, but cow-cow …
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The place is open all days of the week, but the highlight of Eilat wines is Fridays at noon, which have become not only cheese and wine lunches, but also lunches that need to be booked in advance. Sometimes there is a DJ, live performances and all kinds of cultural events that will not embarrass any Tel Aviv bar. Only at the last sommelier conference, held about two weeks ago at the Tel Aviv Hall of Culture, “Eilat Wines” won the best wine bar category.
YA INN in Eilat (Photo: PR)“This is the best wine bar in the country, and not just in the southern region,” Eran Les is careful to note, “When they told me there was such a category I immediately told them that if it was regional I would not come,” he notes with humor, but there is something in his words. The southern region in general, and the Eilat region in particular, are not known for the space and the large supply they provide for wine and culinary lovers, “although I am happy to say in recent years there is a very developed wine scene. We started it, we were the pioneers, “The concept is a bit different, and there are good restaurants here, and even an Eilat winery called the Red Sea Winery. There are four wine anchors here, each with a ‘vibe’ and a slightly different statement. People wander between scenes, each according to his taste, and that’s lovely to me.”
We know what has happened to the wine consumption of Israelis in the last two years and in general to the flourishing of the area regardless of Corona, how do you measure the wine consumption of the residents of the south and especially in Eilat?
“I think consumption in Eilat is higher than the average in the country, if only because Eilat is a place of freedom. This without regard to the population that lives there. And in freedom of course we will drink alcohol, beer and wine. And secondly, in general “We see it very much in the understanding of the customers, as well as in their demands and in the things they are looking for.”
YA INN Hotel in Eilat (Photo: PR)Wine Hotel
The main reason for the conversation is the shocking news that Les released to the world air a few days ago. It may be the fulfillment of the dream of every drinker or wine lover, and those who are interested and thirsty for a wine vacation 45 minutes flight away, and it is a new hotel that will be built right above the wines of Eilat. “What happened here at Eilat Wines over the years was really an evolutionary process of the place. If you had talked to me a decade ago for example I would not have believed we would be where we are today,” says Les. “Over the years we have created a lot of cultural activities, like shows, meals and countless attractions and exhibitions, and the main axis has always been wine and culinary.
Admittedly, you are in the industrial area, not the high-light area of Eilat and certainly not close to the sea, did you not fear that a hotel in this area would be problematic to market?
“This answer has two parts. First of all, any entrepreneur who wants to build a hotel, the first thing he thinks about is what concept I will give to a hotel. And here it is the other way around, the concept already exists, and it’s just let’s put the hotel from above. On the way: the first difficulty was to put the idea into practice, because the Planning and Building Act did not initially approve the establishment of a hotel in the area where we are in. So first thing had to be done to make that change, and I’m very happy that it happened. It passed in the master plan (urban planning) and now it is already technical. This is the practical phase of construction. “
And the location?
“That’s the second part of the answer. Look, I once had a meeting with the former Herods CEO. And I remember he said to me: ‘You know, once when I came on a weekend to see who the important guests I had that weekend were, and they would ask me,’ What to do in the city, ‘I would immediately tell them,’ Wait for me here tomorrow at 12:30 and I will surprise you. “Then we would come to you.” You, in the industrial area, have become me, and we are the outsiders. “
“So why would people come to an industrial area? They first come to an urban hotel, and you know what it’s like with Jews, as soon as we got the approval from the district committee then all the neighbors want now too. I guess a decade later there will be at least three hotels. You probably know that in the industrial area of Eilat there is a very hot culinary scene. There is Eddie’s hideout, and there is the brewery and quite a few cafes and places to eat. There are attractive things for those who come to relax. “
YA INN in Eilat (Photo: PR)Les says the opening expectation is about 4 years with an option at least, and that the construction phase is starting no later than next March. “We need to first get out of here, find an alternative place for Eilat wines, and then start building the hotel. All the permits and plans are in place, and it’s already on track.”
The wine underground
The concept of the hotel will of course be an experiential wine hotel with 100 rooms and eight floors, and it will probably be intended for couples only, and not for families with children. “There are already simulations of the rooms that will be offered in four different sizes, and I do not want to give each room a wine refrigerator, but to allow the whole experience to the guests. I think our audience will be those who are tired of the usual hotels. The people. If it’s my suppliers, who do not want to come to Eilat anymore, who have given up on Eilat. “His already exists today. And here’s just an example from last week, last Wednesday we had an exhibition, on Friday Victor Schoenfeld, the winemaker of the Golan Heights Winery, was here, we recorded a podcast and combined tastings with him, and it only happened this week.”
When I talk about the general public, I feel like Less is shrinking a bit. When I tell him that he laughs, and says that somewhere he likes to stay underground. “I admit that I like it. I do not think now how we advertise, and I have to explain endless explanations of why it is worthwhile to come to the industrial area. The hotel will be like this. “
“The romantic place in Israel”. YA INN in Eilat (Photo: PR)It is clear that this will be the romantic place in Israel.
“I keep my fingers crossed that this is what will happen.”
Is your audience mostly local?
“There’s a very strong local nucleus, but because it’s always word of mouth, that nucleus always brings the people from outside. Not locals. It grows while moving. Sometimes people come here and say to me, ‘How did we not know about this, how do you not tell it?’ And I tell them, ‘Listen, do not tell about this place, lest it suddenly become everyone’s place, because we can not be what we are now.’ But the hotel is an escalation.
Start at a level
Les, make no mistake, he was not originally from Eilat, “The truth is that I wandered a lot until I got to Eilat. I was at the core of the first river that established Kibbutz Ortal in the Golan We knew we would move one day. ” And they did move. A business offer in Eilat that is not related to wine moved Dolly and Eran to the southern city after several years of living in Tel Aviv. “We worked on it for a few years, and then one day I told Dolly that I wanted to make Cabernet Sauvignon for a living. I did not know what, but something in the world of wine that I had a connection to when I planted vineyards when I was young, tickled me. And two years after that, we opened the store. “
Dreamed of wine back in the nineties. YA INN in Eilat (Photo: PR)In the late 1990s, dreaming of wine in Israel was a great courage.
“True. We really developed, with several incarnations over the years. At first, because of my connection to the Golan I had an emphasis there, but over the years we were exposed to all the interesting wine regions. Most of us were, and we combine everything from everything. “I believe that in the end, those who live in a country that produces wine should drink local wine. It also happens naturally, and we must also act to make it happen naturally.”
How did you survive the two years of the corona?
“We kept working a bit. The place is also a wine shop, so it stayed open, and for that luck. And we also developed a lot and took the time to make a lot of changes to the place, and they really tidied up and enlarged the place and created more commercial areas inside. We made good use of that time, too. “There were supports that helped us survive. But Eilat was in a very difficult situation. During the closures the whole hotel area did not turn on the lights, it was a dark block with fences laid so that no one would climb. And it was a very difficult atmosphere and it was something very sad to see.” .
Is Eilat going to be back on the map?
“I hope. Business in Eilat in January and February is very difficult every year, regardless of Corona, but especially now – when the Omicron was closed without closure and the city was empty. Businesses lost money in those months. Most hotels and businesses – most lost. But these are weak months too. “Like this. Now everything is starting to recover and spring is upon us.”
YA INN in Eilat (Photo: PR)Is there a longing for Tel Aviv or are you already completely Eilat?
“Will I tell you the truth? I love Eilat. I have been surfing for more than 20 years, and that’s part of the magic for me in this city here and my love for it. But every time I’m in Tel Aviv I pass Bialik, in the square in front of the house I used to live in “I get a little pinched in the heart every time I’m there. But I chose to be here and I’m fine with it.”