Our Restaurant Recommendations
Here are a few of our favorites in South Tel Aviv, but there are a practically endless number of fantastic options in Tel Aviv.
- Tenat (Chlenov St 27) – delicious Ethiopian restaurant a bit further away from the apartment (15-minute walk). It’s in a slightly sketchy area of town and very inexpensive.
- Dalida (Zevulun St 7) – chef restaurant with Mediterranean-style tapas. A bit more upscale, but if you’re there before 19:00 it’s 50% off most of the menu, so you can get an amazing meal for a great price.
- Ouzeria (Matalon St 44) – chef restaurant with Greek-style tapas. A bit more upscale, but have a 59 shekels lunch special good until 17:00. One of Aaron’s favorite dishes in the whole city is their lamb siniya.
- Saluf & Sons (Nahalat Binyamin St 80) – a fun, modern take on Yemenite food. It’s in the Levinsky Market area and very reasonably priced.
- Yom Tov (Levinsky Market) – two brothers whose family is from the Balkans run a traditional Balkan-style deli and sandwich shop, both in the Levinsky Market. They’re also the nicest guys in the world and generally delighted to chat.
- Kasba (Florentin St. 3) – delicious cafe with a quintessentially Florentin vibe. There will definitely be someone there writing his or her first novel and at least half the tables will be rolling and smoking joints.
- Shamaya (Vital 2) – home-cooked North African food. Only open for lunch Sunday – Thursday.
- Coffee Corner (Abarbanel 29) – our favorite place for a cup of coffee. This small coffee stand (no real seating) has great coffee, sandwiches, and pastries, and the owner and workers there are wonderful.
- Meshek Barzilay (Ahad Ha’Am St 6) – Tel Aviv has the highest number of vegans per capita in the world. With that comes a delicious array of vegan restaurants including some, like Meshek Barzilay, that even the meat-eater in the group will enjoy!
- Anat’s Kitchen (Carmel Alley 23) – this hard-to-find gem is in an alley near the bottom of the Carmel Market, and it’s the absolute epitome of home-cooked Middle Eastern food. If you ask about one of the dishes, expect to be invited back in to the kitchen to take a look!
- HaKovshim (HaKovshim St 48) – this typical Tel Avivian cafe is a perfect place to sit outside, enjoy an Israeli breakfast (a must for any visit to Tel Aviv!) and do some people watching. They buy all their produce from the Carmel Market, which is right next door, so you can count on peak freshness.
- Manta Ray (Kaufmann St 703) – located right by the beach, Manta Ray specializes in all sorts of Mediterranean foods, especially seafood. Their frozen lemon margaritas are famous for good reason and shouldn’t be missed!
- The Old Man and the Sea (two locations, we prefer the one at Jaffa Port for the ambiance) – This is a Jaffa staple and it’s well known for a reason. They serve an incredible traditional Middle Eastern meal with more than 20 appetizers included in every meal. The only challenge is finding room in your stomach for the main dish after all those appetizers!
