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Israeli Food: Top 10 Must-Trys

A Guide To Some Of The Best Food In Israel And Why You Need To Try Them Now!

By Mary Luz Mejia | Published on August 7, 2023

Israeli food is a delicious tapestry woven by the people, the surrounding countries and their shared culinary legacies. This includes foods brought by the many people who arrived from Europe and North Africa as well as the cuisines of nearby countries including Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine. While there's always a place for a creamy bowl of hummus or a fresh, herb-flecked Israeli salad, the food in Israel offers so much more. Cruise to Jerusalem, Haifa and beyond to take a bite out of one of the best food vacations possible. Go for the shakshuka and stay for the sabich. You'll be glad you did!

1. Some Like It Hot: Shakshuka

In a little alley connecting the Jaffa Flea Market to a main road in the old port (now Tel Aviv), you'll find the featured-on-TV Dr. Shakshuka restaurant. Long, communal tables seat hungry locals and visitors clamoring for a sizzling skillet of red, spicy tomato-onion sauce with poached eggs and a few other add-ins, such as Merguez sausage, mushrooms or chicken. The first time I had this dish, it was a revelation. Full-flavored, bold and hot — much like Israelis themselves — you'll want some bread to sop up the sauce and go for the fresh, seasonal salads to cool off.

2. The Best Way To Start Your Day: Israeli Breakfast

Inspired by the hearty breakfasts served on kibbutz collective farms around the country, Israeli hotels have been serving similar breakfast buffets for guests since the 1950s. Think Mediterranean grazing board without the cold cuts, and you start approximating this tasty spread. There's a usual selection of yogurts, cheeses, hard-boiled eggs, fresh juices, butter and breads, but the stars of the show in my humble estimation are the plethora of fresh salads (fruit and veggie) with loads of herbs, dips, olives and cured fish. I had no idea salad for breakfast could be this delicious — and so healthy!

3. Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This: Kunāfah

Jerusalem food offers something for everyone, and if it's a sweet tooth you need to satisfy, head to Al Aksa in Old Town, Nablus, for one of the best desserts you've ever had: kunāfah. Comprised of two layers of finely shredded, buttered wheat dough, the interior is filled with a creamy cheese that's flavored with orange and cardamom. The dessert is served hot, but not before receiving a final drizzle of lemon and orange blossom water syrup or some crushed pistachios scattered on top. Elegant, delicious and unique, it's a must-try with a good cup of coffee.

4. The Best Sandwich You Never Knew You Needed: Sabich

To the uninitiated, the sabich is what foodie vacations are made of. Iraqi Jews introduced the sandwich to the country in the 1940s, and it's composed of perfectly fried, puffy pieces of eggplant, hard-boiled eggs, tahini, salad, hummus, parsley and sometimes even a pickled mango sauce called amba. It's the go-to snack or handheld breakfast of Israelis. Find a great version of this at Sabich Tchernikhovski in Tel-Aviv — and, trust me, you want the amba!

5. Israel's Beloved Hand-Held Sandwich: Shawarma

Enjoyed throughout the Middle East, and likely going as far back as the Ottoman Empire, shawarma is a marinated, spit-roasted meat that is cooked on a huge, layered rotating skewer. Expect turkey, chicken, beef or lamb as your meat option, which then gets finely shaved and can be served with salads, pickles and sauces, or neatly tucked into a tasty pita. If you're in Jerusalem, head to Hello Yemen, grab a table and tuck in!

6. Sacred Bread: Challah

This is one of my all-time favorite Israeli food items, and it's consumed traditionally on Shabbat or special occasions. You'll find these egg-enriched, yellow-hued, leavened and beautifully braided breads often topped with poppy, sesame or coriander seeds. The seeds symbolize manna that fell from heaven, and there's nothing quite like the bronzed beauty of a fluffy, eggy, just-baked Challah. Try it as part of a chicken sandwich or a cinnamon-nuanced bread pudding at Tel Aviv's Port Sa'id.

7. Next-Level Donuts: Sufganiyah

I visited Israel during Hanukkah, which meant sufganiyah (hole-less donuts) were everywhere and being enjoyed by everyone! Biting into these jelly-filled beauties is a delicious experience. From strawberry jam-filled to Bavarian cream, you can find a sufganiyah to suit your preference. Some of the best food and treats in Haifa are found at Shemo Bakery, helmed by celebrity chef Miki Shemo. Try the lemon pie version — you're welcome!

8. Savory Snacks: Bourekas

These savory pastries of Sephardi Jewish origin are made with phyllo, puff pastry and a thin wheat-based dough often filled with feta or other salty cheeses, spinach, potatoes, mushrooms and even squash. Dairy filled versions are usually shaped into triangles, while non-dairy alternatives are fashioned into circles or squares. These get sprinkled with sesame, poppy or nigella seeds and sometimes even a dusting of za'atar. Head to Jerusalem's Bourekas Musa for dough that's made in-house and filled with a host of craveable inclusions.

9. Deep-Fried Vegetarian Perfection: Falafel

Although the falafel has been adopted as a beloved Israeli food, its origins are likely rooted in Egypt, Lebanon or Palestine. Yemenite immigrants started sharing these chickpea and herb-studded fritters with Israelis in the 1950s, selling them in paper cones. Some locals prefer falafels made with fava beans; both are seasoned with cumin, coriander, parsley and onions. Wrap them up in flatbread, top with pickled veggies, salads, hummus or tahini, and you've got lunch to-go. Grab yours at Falafel HaZkenim for the best food in Haifa. Don't forget to ask for a drizzle of Hazkenim's special hot sauce or lemon-scented tahine!

10. Gulp It: Pomegranate Juice

Near the Mahane Yehuda Market in the Old City of Jerusalem, the cobblestone-lined alleys feature men and women selling cups of crimson red, freshly pressed pomegranate juice. Vendors in these bustling corridors also press Jaffa Oranges, but I'm here for that red elixir that's bursting with a unique sweet-tart flavor with notes of red wine. This is not at all like any bottled version you may have had and is, on its own, a foodie vacation moment to savor.

Taste-test these Israeli food memories and discover a few of your own on an Europe Cruise.