Kaymak @ Shuk Levinsky

Lately we've been doing some of our grocery shopping at Shuk Levinsky, an open air market in the Florentine neighborhood of Tel Aviv. After an hour of arguing with vendors and stocking up on nuts and spices it's nice to sit down and take a break, read the newspaper and have a sandwich. Kaymak is the perfect place for this. Choose between their delicious sandwiches and daily specials. The company is warm and the arak flows freely.

An Iraqui sandwich special: techina, fried eggplant, hard boiled egg and lettuce on whole wheat gebetta .

Orange gazoz (home-made soda pop) and cucumber sticks.

Turkish coffee and a carrot muffin.

Kaymak
49 Levinsky street
Shuk Levinsky
Tel Aviv

The Hand Factory

The Hand Factory is a great postcard shop in Old Jaffa.

They also did a wall drawing at the recent Fresh Paint Art Fair.

and another in 2009 on Messilat Yesharim street (Tel Aviv)
The two wall drawing photos are from Julien Roux's website.

The Hand Factory
Julien Roux & Elanit Leder
15 Netiv Amazalot
Old Jaffa
tel 054 9205592

BILL and Chimera

Summer has arrived and a recent gust of dance performances in Tel Aviv has left us pretty busy balancing work and play. Last week we went to the premier of BILL by Sharon Eyal and were truly amazed. The movement, costumes, lighting, everything was precise with just the perfect amount of crazy/wild. It has been a while since we have seen truly forward thinking choreography. We loved it and can't wait to see what she does next.

Last night we continued our summer dance binge at Chimera where we enjoyed 13 short dance pieces by the Batsheva Ensemble. If you hurry, there are 2 performances left over the weekend.

images from the Batsheva website.

Thai House

As we eat out in Tel Aviv on a regular basis, we have recently noticed the lack of selection in world cuisines. It is almost impossible to find an authentic East Asian restaurant that serves anything but sushi. Pakistan to China, Africa and South America are not represented at all in the local food scene.
That said, there is one exception: Ba'it Thailandi (Thai House) is not only a genuine Thai restaurant, but one of the better estzablishments in the city. The restaurant serves traditional Thai dishes made with real Thai ingredients, grown specially for the restaurant on a farm outside Tel Aviv. Their Tom Yam soup is an absolute must with the right amount of tangy flavor and their Som Tam (a spicy green papaya salad) tastes almost as if you are eating in a food stall in Bangkok. For main dishes just take any of their wonderful curries or stir-fries. For dessert, if you have room, the sticky rice with mango is to die for. This is by far one of our favorite places in Tel Aviv. We wish they would redecorate, though...

Tom Yam Soup

Som Tam

Red Curry with chicken and potatoes.


Ba'it Thailandi (Thai House)
8 Bograshov, on the corner of Ben Yehuda
Tel Aviv
tel 03 5178568

Lunch at Mezze

This small vegetarian restaurant has been under our noses for quite a while, but we only began eating there recently. The menu is laid back and the dishes are not too sophisticated. Mezze offers tasty and well balanced imaginative veggie options perfect for the health conscious (we spotted many a dieting local celebrity there).
The highlight of their menu is the absolutely delicious tahini (techina) of the week, with combinations such as tahini with yogurt and dried tomatoes and tahini with chili and oranges. The mains are mostly rice and grain based dishes all very tasty and filling. We had black rice with pumpkin, azuki beans, herbs and goat feta cheese. It was rich in flavor and texture. The special of Indian vegetable stew with whole grain rice was simple, slightly sweet  and also very good.
Mezze also offers a menu of shakshuka, sandwiches and salads options and an array of small mezze dishes. Highly recommended.

The secret tahini and freshly chopped salad

Black rice with pumpkin, azuki beans, herbs and feta cheese

	Indian vegetable stew with whole grain rice Quinoa and sprouts with yogurt sauce Mezze 51 Echas Ha'am St. Tel Aviv tel 03 6299753

Dinner at Chloelys

We went to dine at Chloelys with high expectations as we were told it was one of the best fish restaurants in town. Entering the restaurant we were surprised to see a large, busy and child friendly space.
The food was definitely good. For starters we tried the soup of the day, a large bowl of Cold Gazpacho with Parsley Sorbet, and an excellent dish of Hand Made Smoked Salmon.  For mains we went only for fish, and tried a very good Gilt-head Bream Fillet on Grape Leaves with Bulgarian Cheese Filling and a heavier dish of Grey Mullet Filet with Gnocchi. 
Generally speaking, the food was done very well. But we can not agree with the overly positive reviews associated with the restaurant. It takes more than just good fish to make us satisfied and we found the dishes to be very standard, some even boring, not to mention a bit overpriced considering the atmosphere and poor service. Chloelys is a good option for big family dinner, but not an intimate night. It wouldn't hurt refreshing the menu.

Cold gazpacho with parsley sorbet

Hand made smoked salmon

Gilt-head Bream Fillet on Grape Leaves with Bulgarian Cheese Filling

Grey Mullet Filet with Gnocchi

Dacquoise Praline. A mundane dessert.

Chloelys
16, Aba Hillel Silver st.
Ramat Gan
tel 03 575 9060

Lunch at the Container

After the 1 1/2 hour walk to Jaffa we were famished so we sat for an excellent lunch at The Container, a new bar by Chef Vins Muster at the Jaffa port. We loved the location, surrounded by fishing boats on the dock, and the airy atmosphere of the hangar. It's a great place for lunch and also great for an evening out, not to mention a welcome alternative to the yuppie Tel Aviv port. We sat on the bar and ordered three delicious dishes: root vegetable salad with Jerusalem artichoke and truffles, smoked forel with horseradish and grouper steak in butter and herbs. We loved them all and will be back for more...

The Menu is mostly fish and seafood base with some salad options.

The kitchen.

Some fellow diners.

Root vegetable salad with Jerusalem artichoke and truffles.

Smoked forel with horseradish.

Grouper steak in butter and herbs.



The Container
Jaffa Port
tel 03 6836321

Peres Center for Peace

Today was a gorgeous day and we took a walk through Tel Aviv south to Yaffo to check out the fairly new Peres Center for  Peace designed by Fuksas Architects. Apparently they have been opened since December (we stand corrected). We must re-visit some time during the week to check out the interior. Finally, a piece of architecture worth visiting!

Pre-Yom Ha'zikaron

The Tel Aviv municipality all set up for the big national morning day.

A Family Vacation at Villa Melchett

Come March, we went to the Kinneret, on what has become an annual family vacation at Villa Melchett. Once belonged to Lord Melchett's family, the turn of the century villa and the surrounding grounds are situated right on the beach. Anyone can rent the place. L did and got us spending 3 wonderful days of lounging around and relaxation. We were a bit displeased with the management, but the luxurious rooms, professional kitchen, fish pond, 2000 square meters of grass, hammocks, oriental tent and the open view to the Sea of Galilee kept us very content.

The Moroccan lounge in our bedroom.

The villa from the front garden

Going on a walk

A content family member.

Cairo!

The last two days we spent roaming the streets of Cairo, a beautiful, over populated fascinating city. We'll definitely be back. 

Zamalek neighborhood, as seen from a bridge over the Nile.

Inside the Sultan Hassan Mosque

A fellow explorer at the Khan Al-Khalili market.

Medieval gates at Khan Al-Khalili

Details of... Hieroglyphics

Sharia as-Souq, Aswan Market