Israeli Street Foods
While looking for restaurants in Israel you must know that eating out in Israel must not necessarily be expensive, and cheap food must not (necessarily) be Burger King or M. Donalds. In fact, in Israel as in many other Middle Eastern cities, “street food” is very popular. Street food may be called fast food, but what gives it a special edge is that some of the places have no chairs, so the client has to finish his meal while standing in the street. That may not sound like the most civilized thing to do, but in Israeli streets you will see businessmen as well as young moms and teenagers eating this way.
Israel’s top street foods are:
Falafel - the most common and affordable street food is served in a pita bread (full or half) along with salad, pickles and Tehina. Falafel balls are usually made of either hummus (chick peas) or ful (broad beans) seeds mixed with parsley and some spices. Those with an edgy stomach may want to try one falafel ball before getting a full serving…
Shawarma – in Israel (unlike other places such as Turkey) Shawarma is made of turkey meat, and is usually served in pita bread along with salad, Tehina and pickles. The size of the pita may vary, and if you want to get your money’s worth – look at the size of the pita before ordering, and ask for a serving without salad or pickles. This way you can increase the amount of meat you are getting for the same price, and save yourself the second serving.
Sabich – the meaning of the word is “morning” in arab, and it is the traditional food Iraqi immigrants introduced to the Israeli street. It may be found on all cities in Israel, mainly in Ramat-Gan. The essence of this food is pita bread with fried eggplants, an egg, salad, tehina and pickles.
Tunisian Sandwich – is a sandwich usually made from a baguette with many surprises that make a delicious meal. Additions may include: Tuna, egg, pickled lemon, salad, fried hot green pepper etc.
Lafa – usually means a big pita bread which has been cooked in a taboon, and is filled with some shish-kebab, salads and French fries. It is a full meal in itself for quite a big person (I could finish one myself only in my teenage years). Some choose to fill their lafa with goose liver, but that is out of the specified price range and definitely out of the weight watchers points specified below…