CuisineInternational
Price$
NeighborhoodHatikva
HoursSun-Thu 11:00-16:00, closed Fri-Sat
Last verified

Why locals love it: A Bukharan workers' canteen in Shapira, home to a large Uzbek community, run by the Hanimov family since 2007 with no reservations taken.

Tip: There are no reservations, so arrive early for a table; order the dushbara dumpling soup and a charcoal-grilled kebab.

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Location

Address: Mesilat Yesharim Street 15, Tel Aviv-Yafo

More hidden gems in Tel Aviv

Cafe Levinsky 41 ★ 3.7

$ SandwichFlorentin

Cafe Levinsky 41 mixes house-made gazoz sodas and preserved-lemon sandwiches in a tiny corner kiosk that Benny Briga opened at Levinsky Market in 2012.

Why locals goA four-by-six-metre corner kiosk at Levinsky and Merhavia that is easy to walk past; the Susita truck seating out front is long gone.

TipAsk Benny for a gazoz built from the day's fruit, herbs and flowers; the old 1975 Susita truck now survives only as a small model.

Shemaya ★ 4.4

$$ Middle EasternFlorentin

Shemaya in Tel Aviv-Yafo simmers overnight Middle Eastern stews and slow-cooked hummus in a tiny Florentin storefront that most tourists walk past.

Why locals goShemaya is a one-man kitchen in a modest Florentin storefront; the slow-cooked hummus is gone by early afternoon most days and never remade.

TipCome before 13:00 for the hummus; once the pot empties for the day, the kitchen moves on to the evening stews.

Irit's Lachuch ★ 4.6

$ Middle EasternKerem Hateimanim

Irit cooks Yemenite lachuch with a crispy egg, grated tomato and zhug in a small shack-like cafe beside her childhood home on the edge of Carmel Market.

Why locals goA small shack-like cafe beside the house where Irit grew up, behind a bright blue door on a lane off Carmel Market, with no fixed menu.

TipLook for the bright blue door on Simtat HaCarmel; hours can shift, so come mid-morning on a weekday.

The Fisherman's Restaurant ★ 3.8

$$$$ SeafoodJaffa

The Fisherman's Restaurant in Hangar 1 at Jaffa Port has served classic fish cooking on the waterfront since 1973, facing the fishing boats in the harbour.

Why locals goA classic fish restaurant in an old port hangar facing the moored fishing boats, easy to miss among the newer Jaffa Port venues.

TipAsk what came in that morning rather than ordering from the printed menu; the freshest catch changes by the day.

Giveret Kwaytiew ★ 4.5

$$ ThaiKerem Hateimanim

Giveret Kwaytiew off Carmel Market in Tel Aviv is chef Mati Nakash's Thai kitchen, serving duck-filled dumplings and kwaytiew bowls most visitors walk past.

Why locals goA chef restaurant by Mati Nakash in a Carmel Market side street, cooking refined Thai dishes with ingredients mostly sourced from Thailand.

TipOrder a kwaytiew bowl, the Thai noodle soup the kitchen is best known for; some dishes carry bacon, so it is not kosher.

Burika Center ★ 3.9

$ InternationalKerem Hateimanim

Burika Center in Tel Aviv's Carmel Market fries burika, a deep-fried pastry of potato and soft egg, into pita at the stall found by Kobi's shouted calls.

Why locals goKobi's shouted call of the dish name is how shoppers find the stall; listen for the words burika, burika over the market din rather than looking for it.

TipFollow the shouting, not a map; Kobi calls out the dish name loud enough to be heard over the whole market aisle.

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