How many food people does it take to hang one sign - important and significant and designed indeed, but modest in size and still one and only one?
I enter restaurant a with an educated guess in my head, based on stale punches and corny jokes, yet I realize almost immediately that I have been seriously underestimated.
It's 9:40 in the morning, and the hostesses are already standing at the entrance, welcoming me and directing me to the event, where the restaurateur who does not require a cigarette at these hours has already gathered - hard-working managers, staff and operations personnel, as well as waiters who are now preparing tables for lunch.
Outside, on the wide terrace overlooking the Sharona complex at half height, there are more lighting people, in the form of a knowledgeable sommelier who is recovering nicely from last night's service and a CEO-colleague who came especially, as well as a real French guest - with an accent, clothes, charm. A few minutes later , Yuval Ben Naria also joins the number that accumulates in my head to a double-digit number, and the answer crystallizes and gathers in front of my eyes.
So how many food people does it take to hang one sign?
This morning in a there are at least a dozen, if not 15-16, and that too only after making sure a minute before that there are screws and that "the one with the screwdriver knows he has to come".
In French it sounds even better.
Ben Naria (Photo: Assaf Karla)
Chef Yuval Ben Naria, Krug ambassador.
Or, because in French it obviously sounds much more natural, Yuval Ben Naria, Krug Ambassade
The aforementioned sign - indeed modest in size, indeed dramatic in its meanings - is patiently waiting on the side for that driller-merbergen, and a kind of impromptu ceremony full of smiles at the entrance of the restaurant, which will come and embarrass almost all of its participants, Ben Naria at the head.
Its design, as one would expect from its Francophile roots, is elegant and beautifully set in the golden-crimson fanfare.
The writing on it is dim, and the letters are deliberately swallowed within themselves, in a kind of teasing that urges you to come closer and wonder, to be interested and decipher.
When you already do that, the message is clear, as well as the big K that now stands in front of the symbolic and deliberately small a, overpowering all the other elements, corrupting them to royalty, and actually appointing them - Chef Yuval Ben Naria, ambassador of Krug.
Or, because in French it obviously sounds much more natural, Yuval Ben Naria, Krug Ambassade.
And now, can I have something to drink?
"I don't remember much from the evening."
Restaurant a
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"This is not a matter of a status symbol or just wanting to be part of a 'club', there is, however, a strong desire to touch as many people as possible, if possible"
"For us, an embassy is actually an extension of the house," explained the choice Louis Henrion, the director of training and business development of the famous French winery, which is coming to Israel with the help of Espirit.
"The process is long, but at its core is the search for food people who are in love with us, chefs full of passion for Kroger, similar to those you will meet if you visit us in Champagne."
This journey, which began with professional conversations over champagne between Israel and France and ended with the sign (actually the Plumbe), lasted many months, and culminated in a one-off tasting dinner that paired the food of a (oyster Gilardo and beef tartare, for example, as well as beef filet on the bone and a roasted seafood bar that came from Cyprus) for four luxurious glasses of Krog, for NIS 1,200 per diner.
Henrion, however, is careful to emphasize that they are not looking for elitism, but for relationship.
"When we check compatibility, all we need to see is one person who is in love with Krug, and can mediate this love to the audience, share it with the people, and represent us in front of them," he explained, "When we recognize such a character, the path is shortened - work on the menu, on the food and the glasses, and agreement on how everything will fit together."
Krug maintains the same relationship with about 190 ambassadors around the world, and Ben Naria is the only one selected so far from the Middle East.
"We don't need three Michelin stars," emphasized Henrion, "we have an advanced gastronomic restaurant in France and a pizzeria in Italy, and now we also have Yuval and a. It doesn't have to be high, but simply suitable - for him, for us, and for our partnership. There is nothing here A matter of a status symbol or just a desire to be part of a 'club', there is nevertheless a strong desire to touch as many people as possible, if possible."
"According to the plan".
From "The best restaurant in Israel"
Yuval Ben Naria, from "The Best Restaurant in Israel", Yes Doku (courtesy of yes Doku)
"No matter how much you plan and no matter how much you practice, there is evolution. After a year the restaurant is better than the day it opened, and after two years it gets even better"
The choice came exactly one year after a opened with a big bang and silenced-corona, and just in time to be designated as the first birthday present.
This is also the maximum cheering that could be expected in her surroundings, given that Ben Naria himself did not inflate balloons or purchase fireworks.
Just thinking about it makes him laugh, and also makes those around him laugh.
In fact, even the popping of the champagne corks that were opened just before the ceremony led to stern stares.
Later, Krug representatives will explain that they do not intend and do not expect and certainly do not want Gal Gadot style celebrations in "Death on the Nile".
It seems that Ben Naria is in sync with this.
"We had an amazing year, and still - tap tap tap - it's hard to find tables here. We have a lot of returning guests and people who may have been disappointed, but that's part of the life cycle of every restaurant," he explained, "there's nothing you can do, no matter how much you plan and no matter how much you practice , there is an evolution. After a year the restaurant is better than the day it opened, and after two years it gets even better. That's how it works, and yes, it works according to the plan."
a profitable today?
"It is completely profitable. It makes money, but not enough yet. Any restaurant that opens, it will take a very long time to find the right balances, so that it can really make a profit"
And you?
Can you find balance?
"I have no balance, I'm out of this equation"
"To touch people".
Henrion (right), Tzur Lester (sommelier, a), Ben Naria and CEO of Espirit Elad Slovatik (photo: Romi Cohen)
"There is a very big expectation of us and there is a very big buzz. That's how it works. I don't fan the flames. I don't have that ability."
Ben Naria talks about refining flavors and deepening abilities, about an ever-improving dialogue with fish and meat suppliers, about kitchen processes, but knows very well how quickly the Israeli validity expired, how quickly the jump to the next thing, and how important it is to try and manage the narrative, the stimulus, the fire
"I don't control the queues and the noise, and I certainly don't produce it. There is a great deal of expectation from us and there is a great deal of buzz. That's how it works. I don't fan the flames. I don't have that ability," he smiles, "It takes time for a restaurant to become a culinary institution. After A decade, I know that people come to Taizo every year to celebrate their birthday. Here, until it becomes like this, we need to pour content, add, improve. We constantly make sure to preserve the word and stay in the mind. There are enough good restaurants here, so it's a complex task ".
Pour content, add, improve.
a
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This complex task has so far been managed in a logical and moderate gradualism, step by step.
You can be absolutely sure that somewhere in the group's offices hangs a dedicated board for her.
Touch panel, if I had to bet.
"We only started with evening, we continued to lunch, we now opened alef on Sundays, which is an izakaya with a lighter and cheaper menu, up to NIS 90 per dish, and we are now talking about Friday lunchtime," he elaborated, "something that will be a little lighter, but not too light , to have alcohol in it because people are already ready at this stage of the week for brunches, and less want formal lunches."
According to Ben Naria, "Sundays in restaurants should look different, also because it is always a very problematic slot. This choice, and I know this from the Indian Arabs at Taizo, creates new audiences for us - including those who are afraid to spend such sums - and helps us introduce a little spontaneity into This place, and also market out slightly different content."
According to him, "the restaurant starts to doze off around 11:00 p.m.", and the expected double-seating on Sundays will make it possible to increase the volume a little, mix a little more cocktails, and go on until one in the morning, DJ and all.
I wonder if that's really what he wants here, and to what extent he's really able to let go of the apron, but he sounds convinced and determined, though not to the point of cooperating with "what was here yesterday".
What was here yesterday, really?
"It doesn't matter, we'll talk about it later with the team," he clarifies.
to preserve speech.
Ben Naria (Photo: Assaf Karla)
To see one person in love.
A and Krug's tasting dinner (Photo: Assaf Karla)
"The only way to develop is abroad.
I see us going out.
Another year, two more years, three more, things are not happening at the pace I would like, but in the end it will be"
Ben Naria has been thinking abroad for many months, probably much, much more than that. "In the casual field, we can still develop and develop, but I am no longer interested in anything related to fine dining," he admitted, "It is a tough battle, even in the bureaucracy And also in manpower and rising costs and competition.
Therefore, the only way to develop is abroad. I see us going abroad. Another year, two more years, three more, things are not happening at the pace I would like, but in the end it will be."
The increasing talk about the arrival of the Michelin Guide to Israel must be of interest to him, as well as the tingling sensation in view of Taizo's absence from the 50 Best list last year (a itself had just opened, and was not yet on the radar).
In this sense, the recognition from Krug is a very great consolation.
"As far as I'm concerned, they've been the top for years, and being part of such a house and such a group of chefs is fun, it's a stamp and it's honorable, but it doesn't matter and won't change anything from our everyday life," he emphasized quickly, while expressing mild anger at the lists that skipped him.
"Yes, it's important to me. I know how hard we try and at what level we work, so somewhere you do want something official, which is a little bigger than the borders of the State of Israel. I'm not getting any younger. I want recognition, and I want to get out of here, And that's something you need. Krog and 50 Best and Michelin - they're all part of the toolbox you carry with you everywhere in the world of magic."
"Knows how hard we work."
Ben Naria and people of a
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Until that happens, there are the just-started Sunday evenings and the other end of that scale, in the form of omakase—the ultra-high-end, super-expensive tasting menu of a.
There are also the Friday afternoons that require another tiny adjustment before the launch, and there are quite a few other programs, which he tries very hard to hide, and fails spectacularly when he comes to make teasing and nothing else.
"I'm opening a fish store. Totally real," he says while revealing a photo on the phone, and in view of my very distinct eyebrow raising, "It will be like a jewelry store. And there's also our kiosk, here at a, once this whole site is really under construction Mall. We want to do grab-and-go, showcases like this, boxes of sushi and all kinds of sandwiches. 'Cafe Taizo' also just moved to Givon Square, and soon we will also open it for a cool sit-in, with some new elements. There are many plans."
What about you?
Do you manage to relax too?
find some kind of anchor?
A little quiet here and there?
Ben Naria does not hesitate.
"No,
He takes one of the bottles of champagne that were opened before the ceremony, and pours.
"I have an amazing team, which gives me the ability to move away from here if I want, but I don't do that because it's important to me to be here, to see the processes, to come and be present every day. I'm constantly... no, then no. I Not going to relax."
So how many Israeli food people does it take to hang a single sign, modest in size and broad in its horizons?
The answer, according to this rather representative morning in a, is one very important man with a screwdriver who knows he has to come, an equally important French visitor who was looking for (and found) love, at least 15-16 present-necessary (at least equally important), many More, and the most important in fact, who carried this moment on their shoulders.
And one chef too.
Less than that, and there is no sign.
More than that, we will see what will be written about him.
a, Migdal Azrieli Sharona, Derech Menachem Begin 121, Tel Aviv.
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