The Gas Station Cappuccino

In the US, if you want an espresso-based beverage and you're travelling on a major highway, unless you are willing to exit said highway and drive into a small city or town that you know has a good coffee shop, you're pretty much out of luck.  

So when Gilad and I stopped at a gas station to get cappuccinos, I was quite hesitant.  The only "cappuccino" experience I had at a gas station in the US was from a strange machine that produced something that looked like it was made from a packet of powder and almost-boiling water.  Gross.  

As you can see, this gas station, and every other one we visited while travelling in Israel, has a real espresso machine.  

And what is served here is actually better than what you might find in many mediocre coffee shops in the US.  I am, admittedly, a coffee snob thanks to a friend who happens to be in the coffee business, and now that I've been over the Atlantic I'm not afraid to say that the coffee situation in my country is generally, comparatively, abysmal.  

The Last Meals

For my departing breakfast we ate at Cafe Smadar in the German Colony, which is also a cinema.  It was Saturday and quite busy with both restaurant and movie patrons.  

The food was fabulous.  As always, an array of spreads including hummus, pesto, sun dried tomato, olive, butter and the lovely cherry jam that I adore,

accompanied by some of the best focaccia I've ever had.  It was thick and flaky, topped with course salt and was really just quite perfect in every way.  

We had a salad of young greens and bell peppers,

really nice ceviche loaded up with parsley,

the standard cream cheese spread, tuna and yogurt with muesli--this time drizzled with silan, or date honey.

I also ordered polenta--the sweetness of which was complemented beautifully by sauteed bitter greens, tomato, cauliflower and tangy, shaved parmesan.  Overall, the food was stellar.

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Later that evening we walked into Jerusalem to Focaccia Bar, where we ordered a limonana and focaccia with garlic, fresh mozzarella, arugula and really ripe and flavorful tomatoes.  It was quite stellar, but so huge and filling and wasn't even the main course!  

Then came salad, Israeli-style topped with shredded mozzarella and delectable fried goat cheese.

For the main course we had linguine with almonds, garlic (and more garlic), herbs and olive oil.

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Destination Malabi

On Friday we took a bus to Jaffa with the sole purpose of experiencing what was touted to be the best malabi ever.  

We found some excellent bourekas along the way at a nearby shop also on Jerusalem Blvd.  They were too hot to eat when we bought them so we let them cool a bit, then savored their delightfully flaky goodness before we moved a few doors down to our destination.

Some consider the best malabi in Israel to be right here at 94 Jerusalem Blvd. in Jaffa.  The recipe is evidently Bulgarian, handed down through generations of the Levi family.  

It's standing room only, and the choices are minimal as is often the case where the food is spectacular and specialized.  We chose one traditional malabi with rose syrup and another chocolate with the same. The original was quite something and won hands-down, though the chocolate pretty good too.  

Jerusalem: Breakfast in Old Katamon and Dinner near the Shuk

Thursday morning we drove to the Old Katamon neighborhood in Jerusalem for breakfast at Shosh Cafe.  

It was quite something with a variety of spreads--pesto, sun dried tomato, olive and labaneh, 

Israeli salad, museli and yogurt, jam, sweet tahini, great bread, a chocolate croissant

(close up of chocolate croissant below).

 

Gilad ordered an omelet that came surrounded with dairy delights and even more olive & pesto spread, plus some really tasty tuna.  

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Later that day Gilad's mother made us Turkish coffee at home with whole cardamom.

A bit after coffee we ventured downtown to Topolino, a kosher Italian restaurant just outside of the shuk in Jerusalem.  We chose to sit outside and it was an intense experience as our table was very close to the street with a nonstop flow of people walking to and from the shuk and busses driving by.

For an appetizer we shared mushrooms filled with goat cheese and Chinese pecans in a cream and brandy sauce.

For our main courses we both chose (one of our absolute favorites) gnocchi, mine with sage and butter and his a beetroot gnocchi in cream with walnuts and spinach.  

Needless to say, we skipped dessert.

Goat goodies, Sde Boker and Shawarma

On our way to the bedouin farm we stopped at a goat dairy, or "lonely people farm" as they call them in Hebrew.  In other words, a farm out in the middle of nowhere.  We purchased goat yogurt drinks flavored with rosewater as well as two lovely cheeses:  one brie-like and the other a 2-year, aged cheddar-like that had a wonderful bite to it.  We enjoyed them for breakfast the following morning where we stayed out in the desert along with some olives, cucumbers, passionfruit and mango that we brought from home.

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Later we drove to Sde Boker and visited the campus of Ben Gurion University.  There were a few ibex roaming about and flaunting some very impressive head gear.

For lunch we ate on campus and I chose a variety of salads (from top, clockwise):  Israeli, beet, cabbage, yellow pepper, fennel & cranberry and carrot, caraway and celery root.  All quite refreshing for an extremely hot day in the middle of the Negev.  Along with our meal we had a couple of "black beers," as they call them...which reminds me of Pirate Black Beard each time I hear it.  It was tasty, a non-alcoholic, malt beverage that tasted like a cross between beer and birch beer.  

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Upon returning to Jerusalem that evening, I requested to be taken out for shawarma, which I had not yet experienced.  Shawarma is basically Arabic street food, meet sliced off of a spit and served in a number of ways...we had ours wrapped in flat bread accompanied by cucumbers, tomatoes, pickles, onions and a boatload of tahini...plus more for dipping.

At his right hand: Shawarma...and at his left:  A plethora of napkins.  Enough said.

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Later that evening we ventured into the German Colony for dessert at a swanky place called Colony.

The hot chocolate cake wasn't bad...

but the tahini ice cream topped with halva and silan was amazing.  quite amazing.

Into the Negev

On Tuesday morning we set out for the Negev desert by way of the Dead Sea and Masada.  It was hot, hot, hot and the heat seemed to be exacerbated by the exposure.  Towards evening, we were getting close to our destination of Khan Be'erotayim, a bedouin farm near the town of Ezuz (near the Egypt border) where dinner was being prepared for us.

As usual, we weren't sure exactly were to go.  Luckily, the only other car we passed slowed down and asked us if we needed help, and so we followed them towards Ezuz.

At the farm we saw a corral full of camels, looking rather stately in the dim light of dusk.

We were given the option of eating at a proper table close to one of the farm buildings, or eating on the ground near the fire (where coffee and tea was keeping warm)...of course we chose the latter.

Our food was brought on a beautiful tray and included arabic ground meat with spices, parsley & pine nuts over rice, cabbage salad, Israeli salad and an awesome beet salad with onions.  It was all very simple and very delicious.

During our meal, two friendly giants came to keep us company and supervise the eating process.

Afterwards I thought it would be so lovely to hear a little music, so we asked if our hosts happened to have a guitar we could borrow...and they did.  Although it was missing one string, Gilad still managed to fill the desert evening with a fine array of songs much to my delight.  A magical evening indeed.

Dinner with friends in Ramat-Aviv

Later on Monday evening we drove to Tel Aviv to meet up with a few friends.  We dined in the Ramat-Aviv neighborhood at a restaurant in the Brodeski commercial center.  

For an appetizer we shared warm goat cheese on a rice and cucumber salad.

My host chose the schnitzel and mashed potatoes, which looked all together way too American for my tastes...Even though schnitzel is decidedly a source of pride for Israelis, it reminds me too much of nutritionally devoid Americana-esque food to get me excited.  I'm sure it's my own hang-up...who doesn't like fried chicken.

For my main course I had yet another fabulous salad--this one with arugula, toasted almonds, wheat berries, radishes, feta cheese and cranberries.  Delightfully prepared and not overdressed.

For dessert the four of us shared cheesecake (the light and fluffy Israeli variety) with orange marmelade on the side and a fresh, creamy mascarpone-like dessert layered with passionfruit and kiwi.  They were both winners.

Old City and German Colony

Monday we ventured into the Old City with its stone walls and narrow streets.  One would think they were too narrow to drive on, however there seemed to exist a sort of controlled chaos consisting of pedestrians, carts, wagons, cars and gaggles of tourists...and somehow it worked.

First we stopped for some Turkish coffee, delightfully powerful and fragrant with cardamom.  

 We passed a pastry shop and offerings of many kinds of spices, some shaped into pyramids.

 Our lunch options in the Muslim quarter were somewhat limited given that it was the holy month of Ramadan in which a day-long fast is observed, however we managed to find a place that was open for the business of feeding tourists.

As usual we were presented with an array of sides and salads to start, this time Israeli salad, green salad, green tahina, cucumber and yogurt salad and a salsa of sorts.

For my main course I ordered kebabs:  ground, seasoned lamb mixed with parsley and molded around a skewer and grilled in the back of the restaurant by two young boys who served us.  And some french fries. (?)

 At long last I was taken to the most sacred spot in the Old City...the halva guy (can you see the light shining down above the halva???)  Pictured is my host standing next to what is indeed the best halva I have ever had.  I brought a few chunks home and will be very sad when it has disappeared.

As it was quite hot, we stopped for an iced cappuccino.  I can't say enough about Israel and coffee, they really know how to do it.  The one pictured here was so creamy and foamy, very cold and the flavor was strong.  I've never had anything close to the iced coffee concoctions that I sampled on the trip back here in the US.  I think we should take some lessons...

We stopped to see the Western Wall, I purchased some Turkish coffee to take back home and thus our pilgrimage to the Old City for halva and coffee was complete.  

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Later that afternoon we strolled through the neighborhood known as the German Colony and stopped into Cafe Marzipan on Rachel Imanu St. for some out-of-this-world rugelach.  

 

However, my absolute favorite item that I ate on the entire trip turned out to be this exquisite little pastry on the right.  It was savory, flaky, topped with caraway and sesame...the cheese seemed to be a part of the dough and so it was so perfectly balanced--not too rich and not too light, just incredible.  

And I have no idea what it's called!!!