It hasn’t even been a week in Tel Aviv and I am already obsessed with the lifestyle. I understand why people from all over the world decide to make Tel Aviv their home away from home.

Maybe it’s my convenient 5 minute walk to the beach, the lively night scene, or being able to buy iced coffee on every street corner for 5 shekels. Or maybe, narrowing it down, it’s the people and cuisine that are making TLV my new home.

I am interning for Delicious Israel, a company that specializes in culinary tours around Israel. My boss is owner and guide Inbal Baum, and she shares her passion for Israeli cuisine by taking people around the “foodiest” parts of the city. Even after my first day of work, I can proudly say that I am not working at all this summer, but rather putting my heart into something I truly have a passion for: finding hidden food spots.

On my first day, I met Inbal outside of the Carmel Market. She informed me that today’s tour would be a unique one, as the clients signed up for a speciality tour called “Delicious Shuk and Cook.” A foodie’s dream, this tour includes exploring the shuk as well as cooking a feast using ingredients from the market.

Not only were we checking off ingredients we needed to cook our delicious meal, like juicy cherries and nectarines, zaatar, ripe tomatoes, and chicken, we also got a taste of the hidden gems in the market.

Our first visit was to the “Doctor of the Shuk,” who refreshed us for our humid day by offering us various juices. We tasted perfectly sweet medjool dates, snacked on a not so Israeli warm, cheesy bread, and most importantly, ate hummus from the best, Shlomo & Doron.

With our stomachs already full, we headed back to Inbal’s home to concoct a delicious Israeli meal. Olivia, the chef, lead the cooking class and was sure to make both couples a part of the cooking experience. While everyone sipped on cherry and nectarine infused champagne, we were also busy dicing tomatoes, frying eggplant, baking cauliflower, and marinating the chicken.

In just over 2 hours, we prepared a delicious feast: shakshuka, mini sabich, market salad with carrot, kohlrabi and mint, fire charred eggplant, whole roasted cauliflower, chicken in pomegranate syrup, soy, and zaatar, and malabi for dessert.

The best part of the Shuk and Cook: participants receive a copies of the recipes to take home!

The Carmel Market is know for its fresh produce and cheap knick-knacks. The produce are all locally and seasonally grown, which creates friendly competition between vendors.  Light hearted banter and jovial arguments is not only very common, but adds to the charm that has a magnetic pull for loyal customers, who would never think of buying their produce at a conventional grocery store.  The shuk, which is the Hebrew word for market, is lined by vibrant colors of fresh vegetables that are so bright that it is anyone could have mistaken it for artificial coloring.  The fruits and vegetables vary depending on the season; watermelon, figs, and cherries in the summer, persimmons and citrus fruit in the fall, and strawberries in the winter. The flavor of the produce sold in this market are comparable to the taste of candy. The marketplace is currently experiencing an expansion. The development and modernization of Tel Aviv has created an influx of trendy bars, quaint coffee shops, and hipster street food vendors are setting up shop anywhere they can find space around the central street of the market.  However, the charm of the market will always remain the bright atmosphere provided by the colorful produce and their even brighter vendors.

Trying to keep up with Tel Aviv's changing food landscape can be a costly endeavor. I find myself eating out probably more than the average eater outer, and still I am finding myself less and less enthused about spending big bucks to eat in "trendy" places because Time Out Tel Aviv has told me it is the new hotspot. As Tel Aviv feels so tiny, I am weary about hotspots. And I also recognize in this sexy, trend-filled city that sometimes there is value in the hotspot. Santa Katarina is one of those places that you just hear a bit too much about. I had eaten a few appetizers about 2 years ago, sitting at the bar, when they just opened. I was underwhelmed. I remember thinking, oh, another Eyal Shani wannabe with their grilled veggies on tehina. Not what Tel Aviv needed. 

So after avoiding this "hotspot" for two years, I finally re-visited and it is with great relief that I invite you openly to put Santa Katarina on your "to eat" list while you are in Tel Aviv. One of our Delicious Guides, Merav, whose food opinion I trust, was really happy with her meal, so when our mutual friends Marion and Michael were in town, I took the chance to give it my Delicious Israel approval stamp (or not). 

Tomer Agay, whose wife manages the kitchen, is the chef behind the taboon. He came over to chat and took out his phone with pride to show us Ottolenghi's post from the week before before praising his Basbousa (semolina with syrup) cake. Once we got him going, Agay was happy to share with us tidbits of his journey, being sure to name-drop some of the top chefs he has worked with around the world. 

With a mixture of Syrian and Egyptian heritage, he explains that his upbringing was filled with incredible fusion from the two kitchens. The influence is evident in the dishes, from the doah (dukkah/duqqah) and oil served with the breads, to the ..... This is one great example of something we speak about often on our tours - how young chefs look to reinvent their grandmothers dishes, both respecting the tradition as well as innovating to fit the modern palette. 

And where does the name come from? Santa Katarina is a monastery that the chef remembers visiting with his father at a young age while in the Sinai. He shares that he has dreamt of this visit since he was a kid. When he chose the location - on Har Sinai Street, Mount Sinai, in English - the name was clear to him. According to Agay, he has stopped dreaming of it ever since. 

2 Har Sinai St
058-7820292