Comments on: Food Torture: Not Another Cafe!

By: Ilya

Ilya — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 22:20:36 +0000

Molly, never meant to insult you, just to give a rough idea of how this sounds to an outsider. Your complaint is true. And yes, Mexican is the Mizrakhit of America — affordable, tasty, common. However that’ll be precisely like me coming to an American town with a sucky dining culture — let’s say they have a Starbucks or two and their pinnacle of casual dining is the Cheesecake Factory. So anyway, I’d come to that place and say “You know what you guys were missing all along? A shawarma stand!”.

People need to encourage *varied* private business and discourage the Cafe Hillel etc. franchises. And people need standards. But a shawarma stand is not the solution.

To a local, it sounds a bit like “No matter what you guys do, you could always do better by being like America. Oh, and your flag could use some more stars and stripes.”.

I love Mexican food as much as the next guy, but Jerusalem could even enjoy the culinary standards and variety set by Tel Aviv (which has merely one Mexican restaurant, to the best of my knowledge).

P.S. As to the Hebrew University, I think the student body sets a maximum for the prices of many items, and consequentially the prices in the cafeterias are lower than you’d find in any coffee shop (that I know of).

By: Molly

Molly — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:34:52 +0000

Hi Ilya,
Thanks for your comment. I am sorry you found it obnoxious. Obviously you think very highly of Americans and that is very clear in your very kind comment. I actually completely disagree with you. If you know mexican food at all, then you would know it is very cheap. So if you want cheaper places you should start there. And there are already a lot of Americans living in Jerusalem, yet the same kind of cafe keeps popping up. These cafes aren’t for yuppies, they are just little trendy eateries that are very much the Israeli signature food place. So again, not sure where you are going with that. As for bagels. You can buy 13 bagels for NIS 50 at Holy Bagel, which is a pretty decent deal. I was just at Hebrew U and they wanted me to pay NIS 11 for a toast, with cheese and tomato sauce. So again, that is a place with thousands of students but it doesn’t seem to be affecting the price. Having mexican food, or any other type of food is just a nice way to have variety, and that is really the point I am trying to make. Hope I write something that you enjoy more. And just for the record, not all Americans are rich, yuppies. And I for one am not.

By: Ilya

Ilya — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:23:48 +0000

I can usually take a joke but this reads just outright obnoxious. I’d be the first to admit Jerusalem sports some rather mediocre eateries. The German Colony especially excels at that, and many of its patrons are your ex-pats who are apparently willing to overpay for those sandwiches and salads. On the other hand, adding a tex-mex place to make the American bunch feel right at home won’t solve this. You’re not addressing the core issue, just asking to bend the city a little bit more for the growing American population.

To sum it up: More students would bring cheap eateries, more yuppies would bring upscale eateries, and more Americans would bring cream-cheese bagels for 50 NIS.

By: Gabe

Gabe — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 11:22:45 +0000

I’m also blogging about Mexican food in Israel, and I just wanted to update the last comment. Jerusalem has had a few options recently. A quasi-Mexican place opened on the end of Yafo street near the old city, but it closed quickly. Meanwhile Mike’s Place recently reopened in Jerusalem with a full menu of Mexican items.

By: Three Weeks of NIS 3 Coffee! | the big felafel

Three Weeks of NIS 3 Coffee! | the big felafel — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:14:15 +0000

[...] I previously reported that Café Hillel would be opening at a new location on Emek, it turns out that they have changed their minds and [...]

By: Molly

Molly — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 07:07:48 +0000

Hi Katie the college student!
I don’t know where you heard that Aroma has good Mexican food, but their lying to you! There is no real Mexican food in Jerusalem proper. As you can see from previous comments on this post, there are a few places opening up around the country, but none have yet to make it to Jerusalem! There are tortillas here but they are expensive compared to America…so yes, if you can’t live with out Mexican, then bring some. There is also some types of salsa in jars here, but again it is expensive and not so great. If you can cook Mexican food then you will make it, but for people like me that like eating and not making it…life sucks! Good luck with your semester here, and enjoy all the other delicious food that Israel has to offer (because there is plenty of other yummy here too!)

By: Katie

Katie — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 21:48:09 +0000

I’m a college student who will be studying in Israel next semester, and I’ve already been warned about the lack of Mexican food. Is it true that Aroma’s isn’t that big of a deal? I’d heard it was amazing. But it’s always good to know this stuff before I come over. Any advice on bringing things along? I’ve heard they don’t have tortillas & we will want to bring sauces & seasonings. True?

By: perry

perry — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:11:37 +0000

oh what i would give for chimichangas, enchilladas,real salsa and quac!!

oh and while we’re on the subject…does anyone know if tortillas are kosher for passover?!?!?! i’ve been dreaming of a mexican seder for years!!!

(p.s. if you need someone who’s got some mexican flair in the kitchen…let me know!!)

By: p_almonius

p_almonius — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 10:54:40 +0000

There is a Tarantino’s in the center of town (walkable from Emek Refaim) on Rechov Hillel.

Also, there is no street named “Emek” in Jerusalem. “Emek” is a cheese.

By: Brooke

Brooke — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 19:21:07 +0000

As another hungry Texan living in Jerusalem, I am definitely on board with bringing Mexican restaurant here… My family and I have shared many complaints on such a topic. haha!