Come hungry: everything you need to know about a vacation in one of the most interesting places in Israel Israel today

This is not sensational news for the residents of the north that Haifa has long since become one of the most favorite destinations for entertainment.

Restaurants and pubs flood the city, and it seems that everyone can find more than one place to occupy them.

We had to verify the rumors ourselves, so we went on a two-day experiential culinary tour on behalf of the "Yala Basta" company, which specializes in culinary tourism, during which we got to know new and surprising sides of the city.

If we start from the end, then yes - the rumors are true: Haifa is absolutely a place that has a multitude of places for the food lovers among us, with a large and rich selection of restaurants, stalls, bakeries, delicatessens and more just waiting to delight the potential customers.

We actually started it at the "Colony" hotel which is located in a historic building at the foot of the Baha'i gardens, which also has an interesting history in itself.

Colony Hotel in Haifa,

The tour goes through Wadi Nisnas and the lower city, and we started it at Cafe Sami, a family coffee roasting business that has been operating for more than 40 years, which will wake you up even just based on the smell that comes out of the place.

According to the Faisal family who operate the business, they export their coffee to the United Arab Emirates, but also make deliveries throughout the country.

And the secret to long-term success?

How not - family and love.

has been operating for more than 40 years.

Cafe Sami, photo: Eran Itzkowitz

The brewery that also produces good meals

From there we continued to Fet Steinbach Bakery, an electric bakery that offers a selection of light sourdough breads (we highly recommend the hum-ba, an addictive pastry with chocolate) without sugar and without preservatives.

The fact that the manager of the bakery, Ofer Steinbach, was an architect in the past who decided to do a conversion, along with the fact that he himself is a scion of a family of bakers, adds an interesting narrative aroma to the place.

When we arrived at Izmir Borax, we were surprised to find a Turkish "water Borax" opened not by oil or butter, but by raw tahini.

The place offers quite a selection of flavors, but we must admit that we were less than enthusiastic about the place.

Maybe it's the over-saltiness in the borax we tasted, but we have to give them credit for serving an ordinary product with an unusual twist at all.

To ease the saltiness, we arrived at Aiza Bar, which during the day serves as a restaurant and in the evening becomes a popular pub among the young people of the area.

The place has become very well known for the street parties it organizes.

Although we didn't get to them ourselves, we inquired with our Haifa family - and they only told us good things about the place.

to calm with the salt.

Borax Izmir, photo: Eran Itzkovits

The dish that will make you say "Wow!"

In the evening we had to go out a bit and let loose, so we arrived at Livira, a brewery-restaurant in the lower city that offers a variety of types of beer and food.

The real trick is that you can order five glasses to taste the different beers, and thus feel more of the atmosphere of the place.

Then we arrived at Rasif 33, the new restaurant of Chef Hamudi Okla, who is known to many from the first season of "Master Chef".

Since his participation in the program, Okla has had time to specialize in his field - and the result is evident in every bite of the dishes.

It combines Arab, Galilean and Druze cuisine in an open kitchen with a tabon that cannot be ignored, and we could not help but enjoy the amazing food that was served to us.

The highlight was the lamb frikey cobagne, one of the best dishes we've eaten in the last year.

The word "wow!"

As if it was invented especially for these dishes.

The next morning we started at Martha Deli by Chef Elias Mater, who is considered a particularly well-known chef in the Arab sector - who also conducts chef tours with "Yala Basta", and with the way the place looked, we immediately felt a desire to have a close conversation with him about the environment.

Mater decided to open the deli following the corona epidemic, which caused him to stay at home and rediscover his family members, and as usual in life, one thing led to another, and whoop, we have a deli with a pampering selection of meats and cheeses.

Some of the special pastries of Pat Steinbach bakery, photo: Eran Itzkowitz

Later on in the tour, we found ourselves at Michel Suidan's deli.

The place looks like a typical grocery store (and indeed they also sell products that you would find in any regular grocery store), but it contains treasures such as doughs with different fillings that are made by hand, vine leaves and a variety of pickled products, and even products that Suidan imports to Israel especially from abroad.

Another thing that is special about this deli is that you can also find things that most Israelis can't get on a regular basis, such as a crimson hermit from the Monastery of the Silent in Bethlehem or the surprising flavor of Turkish Delight topped with dried roses that comes straight from Nablus, which alone justifies coming to the place.

When stories meet

One of the highlights of the tour is the arrival at Wadi Nisnas.

This is one of the most visited places in Haifa, and as such one might think that it no longer has anything to offer for those who have spent several times in the area in the past, but this is not the case.

The rivalry between George's falafel (with an amazing and addictive tahini) and the falafel of the "old men" is one of the most well-known stories in the market, one that even ties the two places together.

Despite this, both parties are very supportive of each other - and especially do not let this affect their love in creating their favorite dish.

Right across from the old falafel is Hummus Elsham, which gives a new interpretation to hummus.

Not another routine combination of chickpeas with water, salt, lemon and garlic, but something far beyond that.

The best example of this is the faeta, a kind of hummus that combines refined butter, hot yogurt, fried onions, greens and pita croutons.

Apparently the background of the owner Stefan Shahada, half Swiss-half Arab, was what gave him the courage to try to combine all these ingredients in one dish.

so tasty.

Fa'ata with Alsham hummus, photo: Eran Itzkovits

We also passed by the Umm Sabri bakery (which is run by only women, which probably gives the pastries the special touch), Alsadaka sweets (the story of the couple's arrival from Nazareth to Haifa that runs the place will win your heart), the home food stand "Albit Bitek" of Fatma Shahada (who has a wide selection of different and successful dishes that make us wonder where in her busy schedule she also manages to volunteer as an ambulance driver at MDA) and Butlis Abu Shakara (where they offer celebrations with many cuts of local meat, sandwiches full of goodness and meat roulades You have a guru-guru in your heart) - and everyone, each in his own way, left his mark on us (and not just in our stomachs).

In the end, it's probably impossible to get to all the places we mentioned within a particularly tight schedule, and that's fine and even logical, after all, we're all human.

However, it is worth noting that the tour offers what seems to be the best culinary places that Haifa has to offer, each of which gives a different perspective on this city, on its coexistence and its long history.

Feast of meats.

Abu Shakara butcher shop, photo: Eran Itzkovits

Every place has its own story, and when it is accompanied by different foods - suddenly we discover a different angle in the place we are.

It is true that the food ultimately speaks, but the added value of any place, and this tour is the perfect proof of that, is one that will leave us with much more than a culinary mark - but also one that will be remembered again and again.

The reporter was a guest of the "Yalla Basta" company and a guest of the "Colony" hotel in Haifa.

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