Work through the list in order. Hide the notes when you know what to do.
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Try hummus
In Israel, hummus is an everyday warm meal, not a cold refrigerator dip. Silky, freshly blended chickpeas are whipped with raw sesame tahini, warm whole chickpeas (masabacha), cumin, olive oil, and lemon. You wipe the bowl clean with torn pieces of pillowy pita using a circular scooping motion called linagev.
Authentic hummusiya spots open early and shutter by mid-afternoon once the fresh batch runs out. Naturally vegan.
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Try falafel
Crisp, golden-brown spheres made from soaked raw chickpeas ground with garlic, cumin, coriander, and heaps of parsley and cilantro. Fried continuously in small batches, they are stuffed inside a pita pouch with finely diced salad, pickles, and plenty of nutty tahini.
The interior should be bright green from herbs, airy, and never oily. Look for stalls with steady queues where balls are dropped into oil on the spot.
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Try shakshouka
Eggs gently poached in a rich, simmering sauce of sweet bell peppers, ripe tomatoes, garlic, cumin, and fiery chili. Brought to Israel by North African Jewish immigrants, it has become the iconic weekend brunch. It arrives sizzling at your table in a cast-iron skillet.
The yolk must remain runny so you can swirl it into the spicy tomato stew using thick slices of challah bread or warm pita.
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Try sabich
An Iraqi-Jewish vegetarian sandwich layered inside a thick pita. The master assembler stacks melting fried eggplant slices, brown slow-cooked eggs (chaminados), boiled potato slices, Israeli salad, chopped parsley, rich tahini, and tangy pickled mango amba sauce.
Born in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan, authentic sabich requires a skilled vendor who layers every ingredient evenly all the way to the bottom.
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Try Israeli shawarma
Unlike neighboring regions, the spinning vertical spit in Israel is predominantly loaded with tender turkey thighs layered with lamb fat for flavor and moisture. Shaved paper-thin, the meat is tucked into fluffy pita or rolled into a massive flatbread called lafa with tahini and amba.
Authentic Israeli shawarma stalls never use ketchup or mayo; the richness comes entirely from roasted sesame paste and spicy condiments.
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Try Jerusalem mixed grill
The legendary Jerusalem mixed grill, invented on the stalls of Machane Yehuda Market. Diced chicken hearts, spleen, liver, and breast meat are flash-fried on a smoking flat-top griddle with mounds of onions, turmeric, cumin, and coriander. Served piping hot inside a pita.
Best experienced in the bustling evening alleyways around Jerusalem's central market, where cooks chop and sear the meat to order.
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Try bourekas
Flaky, golden savory pastries inherited from Sephardic Balkan traditions, made from laminated puff or phyllo dough. Shapes traditionally identify the filling: triangles for salty cheeses (kashkaval, feta), rectangles for mashed potato, and spirals or rounds for spinach or mushrooms.
Street bakeries slice large bourekas open like a sandwich and stuff them with a hard-boiled egg, pickles, and grated fresh tomato salsa.
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Try chraime
A beloved North African fish stew brought by Libyan and Moroccan Jews. Thick steaks of white fish like sea bass or mullet are braised in a rich, deeply spiced red sauce infused with garlic, hot paprika, cumin, and caraway seeds. A quintessential Friday night Shabbat staple.
The sauce is intense, spicy, and meant to be wiped clean with massive chunks of fluffy challah bread.
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Try jachnun
A Yemenite Jewish weekend specialty. Rolled dough enriched with clarified butter is tightly rolled into logs and baked overnight for 10–12 hours at low heat. The long cook карамелизует the sugars, turning the pastry deep amber with a soft, subtly sweet flavor.
Available almost exclusively on Saturday mornings at markets and roadside stalls. Always served with grated fresh tomatoes, spicy skhug, and brown eggs.
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Try hamin or cholent
An ancient slow-cooked stew designed to simmer uninterrupted from Friday afternoon until Saturday lunch to respect Sabbath cooking laws. The Sephardic version (hamin) features beef brisket, chickpeas, whole eggs, and rice in cheesecloth; the Ashkenazi cholent uses potatoes, barley, and beans.
Incredibly hearty and filling; best sampled on Fridays and Saturdays in traditional neighborhoods of Jerusalem or Bnei Brak.
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Try arayes
Pita bread pockets packed with spiced ground lamb and beef, pine nuts, onion, and herbs, brushed with olive oil and grilled over hot charcoals. The bread crisps into a crunchy shell while soaking up the flavorful meat juices inside.
A massive street-food trend across Tel Aviv and market stalls; dip each crispy wedge directly into creamy tahini.
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Try Israeli chopped salad
The backbone of every Israeli table, known locally as salat katzutz. Firm cucumbers and sweet field tomatoes are diced into tiny, uniform cubes along with fresh parsley. It is dressed strictly just before serving with good extra virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, and sea salt.
Served at virtually every meal, from hotel breakfast buffets alongside labneh cheese to filling street pitas with falafel.
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Try fresh Mediterranean seafood in Akko or Haifa
The historic Mediterranean ports of Akko and Haifa boast world-class seafood dining. Ordering grilled local sea bream, red mullet, or calamari instantly triggers a parade of small meze mezze plates: smoky charred eggplant, pickled octopus, taramasalata, and fresh warm bread.
In non-kosher portside restaurants, look for local wild shrimp and calamari flash-sautéed in olive oil, garlic, and white wine.
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Try knafeh Desserts and pastries
A warm Levantine dessert made with mild, stretchy goat or sheep cheese baked beneath a golden crust of shredded kadaif pastry noodles. Drenched in fragrant orange blossom or rosewater syrup straight off the fire, it is finished with crushed green pistachios.
Seek it out in the Old City of Jerusalem, Haifa's Wadi Nisnas, or Old Jaffa. It must be eaten piping hot while the cheese is soft and stretchy.
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Try malabi Desserts and pastries
A cooling, silky milk or coconut-cream pudding thickened gently with cornstarch. Served chilled in cups, it is topped with vibrant pink rosewater or pomegranate syrup, crunchy toasted coconut flakes, and chopped peanuts or pistachios.
Tel Aviv street carts nearly always offer vegan versions made with almond or coconut milk that rival the traditional dairy original.
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Try sesame halva Desserts and pastries
Unlike sunflower halva found in Eastern Europe, Israeli halva is crafted purely from stone-ground sesame paste (tahini) and whipped sugar syrup. Market stalls present it in giant wheels cut into silky, melt-in-your-mouth slabs with large blades.
Explore creative varieties layered with whole pistachios, espresso beans, dark chocolate ribbons, or cardamom. Vendors always offer free tastes.
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Try chocolate babka or rugelach Desserts and pastries
The pinnacle of Ashkenazi Jewish baking. Babka is a rich, buttery brioche loaf swirled with ribbons of molten dark chocolate, cinnamon, or sweet halva. Rugelach are miniature rolled crescent pastries soaked in fragrant sugar syrup the moment they leave the oven.
Head to Jerusalem's Machane Yehuda Market for legendary gooey chocolate rugelach scooped directly from the hot baking trays.
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Try limonana Non-alcoholic drinks
Israel’s quintessential hot-weather refresher: a blended frozen slush made of freshly squeezed lemon juice, sugar syrup, mountain of crushed ice, and handfuls of fresh mint (nana). Blended until frosty and bright green, it is the ultimate thirst quencher.
Order it made-to-order at street corner juice kiosks rather than from pre-mixed slush machines for the freshest punch.
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Try black coffee with cardamom (Cafe Shachor) Non-alcoholic drinks
Strong, finely pulverized dark roast coffee infused with aromatic green cardamom (hel). Often brewed in a finjan pot or simply stirred with boiling water directly in a glass tumbler (affectionately known as cafe botz, or mud coffee) until grounds settle.
It is customary to conclude a hearty meal at a hummusiya with this punchy brew. Ask for bli sukar if you prefer it without sugar.
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Try fresh-squeezed pomegranate juice Non-alcoholic drinks
From late summer through winter, towering pyramids of ruby-red pomegranates appear at street fruit stands. Vendors slice them open and squeeze them using heavy-duty manual cast-iron lever presses right before your eyes.
Ask to blend it 50/50 with freshly squeezed sweet orange juice to soften the intense natural tartness.
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Try arak Local alcohol
The undisputed national spirit of the Levant: a clear anise-flavored distillate produced from grapes. When splashed with cold water or poured over ice cubes, it turns magically into an opaque, milky white elixir known poetically as the milk of lions.
Tel Aviv bars famously serve arak shaken with fresh pink grapefruit juice or tart lemonade and crushed mint over ice.
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Try boutique wines from the Judean Hills and Golan Heights Local alcohol
Israeli winemaking has transformed into a world-class boutique industry. The volcanic basalt of the Golan Heights and cool limestone slopes of the Judean Hills yield remarkable, sun-drenched Syrah, Cabernet, and revival old-vine Carignan, as well as crisp Mediterranean whites.
Look out for ancient indigenous grape varieties resurrected by local researchers and winemakers, notably Marawi and Bittuni.
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Try local Israeli craft beer Local alcohol
A vibrant microbrewery scene flourishes across Israel, from the Jerusalem hills to the valleys of Upper Galilee. Independent brewmasters craft everything from hazy IPAs to Belgian-style ales infused with local touches like date syrup (silan), desert herbs, and blood oranges.
Great craft taps can be found tucked inside Jerusalem's Machane Yehuda Market after dark and across Tel Aviv's Florentin neighborhood.
