Indian food in Israel

[Suvir Saran]

Are there many Indian restaurants in Israel?

How popular are they? How long have there been Indian restaurants in Israel?

I know for a fact that many Israeli and Indian software companies work with each other to service the same clients in the US and other Western nations. Each of these countries has a niche the other has not fully exploited and so they are happy sharing these clients. There is great travel between their employees and also many Indians working in the US, for software companies are traveling to Israel.

Has any of this helped in changing the face of Indian restaurants in Israel?

What kind of dishes are commonly found in these restaurants?

Has Indian food made any impact at all in the life of the Israeli restaurant eating crowd?

Are most, many or all of these restaurants Kosher? Is that a necessity?

[Fat Guy]

I know we have a few Israeli users who will be able to speak to this with authority. What time is it over there anyway? Wake up, people, and give us some answers!

[Suvir Saran]

I know we have a few Israeli users who will be able to speak to this with authority. What time is it over there anyway? Wake up, people, and give us some answers!

And at least one has very recently made a trip to an Indian restaurant. Maybe not to eat.. but to get some curry leaves... I am sure that member could shed some light into this matter for sure.. maybe some fun and positive gossip too.

[GC++]

I know we have a few Israeli users who will be able to speak to this with authority. What time is it over there anyway? Wake up, people, and give us some answers!

The time here is week-end morning.

There are some Indian restaurants in Israel. Most are under the wings of Mrs. Pushkarna.

She has some restaurants all over the country (Tel-Aviv, Herzelia, Jerusalem, Eilat). The food there is OK. I would not compare it to good restaurants in Indian-populated cities (like London and others). You may find there classic Indian dishes.

[Suvir Saran]

I know we have a few Israeli users who will be able to speak to this with authority. What time is it over there anyway? Wake up, people, and give us some answers!

The time here is week-end morning.

There are some Indian restaurants in Israel. Most are under the wings of Mrs. Pushkarna.

She has some restaurants all over the country (Tel-Aviv, Herzelia, Jerusalem, Eilat). The food there is OK. I would not compare it to good restaurants in Indian-populated cities (like London and others). You may find there classic Indian dishes.

Who is Mrs. Pushkarna? What is her claim to fame?

Thanks for being so prompt with a post.. even on a weekend morning. Much appreciated.

Have you eaten Indian food in these other cities you mention (like London)? What is the difference you think between the food there and in Israel?

What are some of the dishes you find most commonly on these restaurant menus?

Are there menus or other information on any of these restaurants available on the internet?

How do these restaurants, if at all, try and define themselves in any particular way for the Israeli community? Is that necessary? Is that something a restaurant should take into account?

[GC++]

Who is Mrs. Pushkarna?  What is her claim to fame? 

Thanks for being so prompt with a post.. even on a weekend morning.  Much appreciated.

Have you eaten Indian food in these other cities you mention (like London)?  What is the difference you think between the food there and in Israel?

What are some of the dishes you find most commonly on these restaurant menus?

Are there menus or other information on any of these restaurants available on the internet?

How do these restaurants, if at all, try and define  themselves in any particular way for the Israeli community?  Is that necessary? Is that something a restaurant should take into account?

Good questions.

1. As written in her web site (Sorry only-Hebrew http://www.rest.co.il/tandoori/index.html ) - she was born in Delhi and came to Israel in 81.

Basically she introduced the Indian cuisine to Israel.

3. Yes, Mostly in London - there you may find it more refined, exact and fresh. As a general rule when there is demand the food is better.

4. You may start looking at the menu while eating some breads (nahns of all sorts and chapati), you may find on the menu Samusas, Pakora, regional dishes like Tandori dishes, Curry dishes and more.

5. As it is for some food all over the world it is more of an exotic food for Israelis.

[Suvir Saran]

1. As written in her web site (Sorry    only-Hebrew http://www.rest.co.il/tandoori/index.html ) - she was born in Delhi and came to Israel in 81.

Basically she introduced the Indian cuisine to Israel.

3. Yes, Mostly in London - there you may find it more refined, exact and fresh. As a general rule when there is demand the food is better.

4. You may start looking at the menu while eating some breads (nahns of all sorts and chapati), you may find on the menu Samusas, Pakora, regional dishes like Tandori dishes, Curry dishes and more.

5. As it is for some food all over the world it is more of an exotic food for Israelis.

Is Mrs. Pushkarna from the Indian Jewish community? Her being from Delhi makes me doubt that, but I felt it is a good question to ask.

Would you mind telling me more about her from the Hebrew article? What sort of an article is it?

What is your favorite Indian dish? Why so?

What is your favorite Indian restaurant in Israel? How often do you visit it? Has anything changed about it since you first went to it?

Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my tedious questions. You are very generous for taking the time.

I hope our other members from Israel, and those that travel there and may know some of these answers will also share their own information. And to all of you, I say thanks in advance.

[GC++]

Is Mrs. Pushkarna from the Indian Jewish community?  Her being from Delhi makes me doubt that, but I felt it is a good question to ask.

Would you mind telling me more about her from the Hebrew article?  What sort of an article is it? 

What is your favorite Indian dish?  Why so?

What is your favorite Indian restaurant in Israel?  How often do you visit it?  Has anything changed about it since you first went to it?

Again, thanks for taking the time to answer my tedious questions.  You are very generous for taking the time.

I hope our other members from Israel, and  those that  travel there and may know some of these answers will also share their own information.  And to all of you, I say thanks in advance.

I will try my best here.

1. Also from that page - Her mother is an Iraqi Jew.

2. The page is advertisement to her restaurants.

3. Emm, this is not an easy one to answer - I would say that I like many dishes, But as my wife doesn't care for hot food (Indian or any) she prefer dishes like Corma. Me - on the other hand - I am more open to tastes also hot.

4. I ate in two of her restaurants lunches and some dinners. There use to be a veggie. Restaurant in South Tel-Aviv where I've been some years ago - it was good also.

Now, as the economy is down, many restaurants try to pull clients by using "business lunches" which makes the food less then it should.

[boaziko]

I am not an expert on Indian cooking and eating, my first steps were taken with your help just recently, but it may be a long way. I guess I have visited 4-5 times in an Indian restaurant in Israel, the last time, 5 years ago (at least). Japanese and Chinese are much more popular.

There are about 25 Indian restaurants in Israel, 25% of those in hotels restaurants, and thus Kosher.

Kosher Is not a necessity but almost 99% of the hotels are kosher due to some "funny" religion outcome, which someone else might want to explain.

Mapa Guide of the 200 best restaurants in Israel, (2000, the most updated…) lists 4 Indian restaurants; 2 Maharaja's branches, and Nemasta. (The first one may be the first in Israel, I guess it already operates in Jaffa for over 30 years) there are no rating in that guide but there are lists, Tag' Mahal is one of those listed for best service.

We also have a local Gault Milliau Guide. 2002-3 edition rates 150 restaurants. The highest grade is 16 (4 restaurants). 12 is the entry grade. The only 2 Indian restaurants are Tandoori (with 12) and Indira (which is unmarked, but gets a sign of Ethnic place), one could get a "Business Lunch" there for the Equivelent of 8 $(us).

Some of the appeal of the Indian restaurants is directed at young Israelis that travel to India.

The following links are to Israeli/Indian restaurants sites

Mostly in plain Hebrew:

Indira:

http://www.rest.co.il/About.asp?code=348

The Indian on Yirmiaho St:

http://www.rest.co.il/about.asp?code=161

[Suvir Saran]

Thanks to both of you. What a treat to have such generous members.

Boaziko,

What are some of your favorite dishes from the Indian restaurants you have tried?

Is Indian food really all that much spicier than some of the Middle Eastern foods?

[Fat Guy]

That's what I was thinking too, Suvir. It seems to me that Indian food should be a great fit given the Israeli diet and cuisine scene. Plus Israel has such wonderful vegetables to work with, so a clever chef/restaurateur could really do something amazing there. And unlike French cuisine, Indian lends itself very readily to being kosherized without any loss of flavor. You lose a few dishes, but most of them work in the kosher format.

[Suvir Saran]

That's what I was thinking too, Suvir. It seems to me that Indian food should be a great fit given the Israeli diet and cuisine scene. Plus Israel has such wonderful vegetables to work with, so a clever chef/restaurateur could really do something amazing there. And unlike French cuisine, Indian lends itself very readily to being kosherized without any loss of flavor. You lose a few dishes, but most of them work in the kosher format.

Correct... that is what makes me wonder... why such slow acceptance.

[boaziko]

FG is absolutely right. It could have been very popular in Israel, and maybe it would, one sunny day. I believe there is something also to do with Hype, fashion and trends that we tend to follow. We are still in the Japanese phase, and my guess that we head to more South American influence.

To the point of spicy food indeed I love it, but usually I eat with wife and kids, who just like a hint of it if any. The Indian food is regarded as Hot in general.

.My young son would prefer Sushi to anything we just order it sans Wasabi and he can go and have 10-16 Nigiri's any day.

I will make a personal affort to introduce the Indian cuisine to my lot.

[Suvir Saran]

FG is absolutely right. It could have been very popular in Israel, and maybe it would, one sunny day. I believe there is something also to do with Hype, fashion and trends that we tend to follow. We are still in the Japanese phase, and my guess that we head to more South American influence.

To the point of spicy food indeed I love it, but usually I eat with wife and kids, who just like a hint of it if any. The Indian food is regarded as Hot in general.

.My young son would prefer Sushi to anything we just order it sans Wasabi and he can go and have 10-16 Nigiri's any day.

I will make a personal affort to introduce the Indian cuisine to my lot.

That was a very thoughtful post.

You are very kind to make this a personal issue. Not what I want...It would be certainly great for Indian cooking.... But do not feel compelled by me.

But you say a lot of poignant things...

Food has become a lot about trends. All over the world. And yet, once some cuisine finds an appropriat introduction, I think it does seem to find a sense of place in that new environ. It is a matter of time and also a matter of how the cuisine is introduced.

[GC++]

I must agree with you all re: trends and fashion.

Regarding spiciness of food in Israel, I would say that most people that would go out to restaurants in Israel don't care for hot food, as opposed to spices that are used in eastern cuisine (which Israeli food is very much influenced by) which use sharp/hot spices but to a lesser degree.

Another point is the economical issue (as I mentioned before) - buffet lunches are good but tend to be more of a main-stream food and not so inventive.

Me - I do miss an intelligently prepared Indian meal.

[Monica Bhide]

I am penning a few words and recipes for a friend for an Jewish Indian cookbook. I am still in the middle of doing a lot of research, I will post more information as time passes

As always the discussions here provide great food for thought. A request, if any one reading this can provide me with recipes, I am sure the author would be happy to use them in the book and provide you credit. Please PM me anything you have particularily around Indian Jewish dishes prepared on traditional Jewish Holidays.

[Sandra Levine]

Jewish Indian cookbook

Now, why didn't I think of that!

[Orik]

The best Indian food I've had in Israel was at the home of an Indian co-worker from Tamil Nadu, so the high-tech industry did have an effect, at least for me

As far as the success of Indian food in Israel, I would say that:

- Many (most?) Israelis, like GC's lovely wife, grew up in spice averse homes. Some of them convert, but many just refuse to try dishes that are hot and spicy. Moreover, very few Israelis would accept vegetarian food as their dinner, so dosa is also out of the question.

- The kosher issue is not significant, as the cross section of kosher eaters and potential Indian food eaters is tiny. My opinion on the effects of kosherization in the real world is well known, so I won't argue about it with FG.

- In a recent survey, held among 385 participants (mostly yuppies and students), the question posed was "what's your favorite cuisine?". Indian tied with Japanese at 5% (see boaziko, not that many people like sushi after all), while Italian scored 28%. Does anyone know what the results would be like in the US? NYC? I'm not sure that for a country with such a small Indian community 5% is bad.

- In my opinion, the omnipresent Mrs. Pushkarna dropped the ball. Her 'Tandoori' chain gradually stopped serving the excellent tandoori fare that was served there initially and now (last ate there 4 years ago) serves mediocre food at Diwan prices (high for the Israeli market).

- You have to keep in mind that even if you pick a more popular cuisine (say, chinese, coming in at 17% in the above survey), there may be only a handfull, if any, good restaurants serving it there.

[anil]

Jewish Indian cookbook

Now, why didn't I think of that!

Most of my friends of my youth, moved to IL in the late 70s through 'mid 90s. Very few of Indian Jews remain in BOM/DEL/CCA. It is important that the traditional Jewish Indian cooking get documented and preserved