Ilan Ben Zion
How One Jerusalem Joint Is Dealing with Israel's Terrible Restaurant Wages
If you think American waiters get screwed, Israelis have it even worse. At the kosher restaurant Crave, servers and bartenders receive a fair hourly wage, rather than surviving off unreliable tips.
Why This Spanish Chef Temporarily Turned Kosher
Can a Galician-style menu without octopus or pork still be called Galician? Rafael Centeno of Spain's Maruja Limón tried to answer that in Tel Aviv last week.
This Israeli Restaurant Is Bringing Jews and Arabs Together Over a Love of Grilled Fish
The head chef of Savida in the ancient city of Acre says that dining there should be “like coming to a family to eat.”
How a Tiny Homebrew Shop Kicked Off a Craft Beer Revolution in Israel
Denny Neilson is the American father of Israeli microbrewing and the sole purveyor of hard apple cider in the land of milk and honey. As the craft brewing scene has exploded in Israel over the past decade, he’s been there every step of the way.
How to Drink Homemade Hooch in the Balkans
On a recent tour of the Balkans, I was pleased to taste some bracing palinka, or homemade Hungarian fruit brandy. I was a little less pleased to try tuica, a Romanian moonshine. And you don't even want to know what's in the poo jacket.
There's More to Greek Liquor Than Just Ouzo
On a recent visit to Greece I discovered that everything I knew about ouzo—and a host of other delicious Greek liquors—was wrong.
Ramen Has Finally Arrived in Israel
The absence of pork ramen at Mian Noodles represents the chef's willingness to forgo gustatory greatness in exchange for accommodating Jewish customers’ dietary restrictions.
Meet the Bagel Guy of Buenos Aires
Jacob Eichenbaum-Pikser, a former geophysics student and Manhattan transplant, has introduced handmade bagels to Buenos Aires and can’t bake them fast enough to meet demand.
Tasting the Highs and Lows of Ethiopian Honey Wine
Tej is Ethiopian mead—a honey wine flavored with a hops-like herb and often made at home or at tej houses. The stuff for tourists is sweet and smooth, but real-deal tej carries notes of diesel.
A Trip to the West Bank's Cheesy Dessert Capital
I recently traveled to the West Bank town of Nablus, the home of one of the Middle East's favorite desserts: a cheesy, obscenely sweet pastry known as knafeh.
Shamburak Is the Most Beloved Comfort Food of the Kurdish
For Kurds living in Israel, shamburak—dough stuffed with ground beef and spices—tastes like home. “It’s an experience which gives me the shivers thinking about it.”
Drinking with the Druze in Majdal Shams
Traveling through the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, you might encounter a community of the Druze—a religious offshoot of Islam—that's still loyal to Syria. And they sure know how to pour a mean drink.