At the Machneyuda Restaurant in Jerusalem, you get no superfluous details, just good food! And yet the resulting dining experience is exquisitely perfect in every way.
We are told that the key to a perfect meal is the combination of good music, great conversation, and impeccable flavours. Fanciful restaurants that charge upwards of $50 for a main course attempt to deliver two of the latter. They try to wow us into shelling the extra dough by adding on 'the glitz.' Expensive cutlery, linen napkins, idyllic decor and location. Not to mention the overpriced wine that goes straight to our heads and prevent us from wondering what hit us when we get the bill!
At Machneyuda in Jerusalem, you will pay between $20 and $50 per person for a main course (A LOT by Israeli standards). But you get none of the above-mentioned superfluous details. And yet the resulting meal manages to surpass all expectations!
- If you are looking for more delicious food in Jerusalem but more on the inexpensive side, check out my Cheap Eats in Israel Guide and general Israeli food guide!
- And if you are stopping in Tel Aviv during your visit, I recommend visiting Herbet Samuel and the Levinsky Market!
The decor harkens to your grandmother's cottage! The plates and cutlery are a garage-sale mismatch. The music varies from modern dance hits to Israeli 70s rock to what can only be the described as the sounds of Saloniki (bouzouki, breaking plates). The location is on a dirty street right off the Machne Yehuda Market.
And yet, the resulting dining experience at Machneyuda is so exquisite, so perfect in every way, that the third ingredient of a perfect meal - the conversation - just naturally occurs.
The Food at Machneyuda Restaurant
As for the food? We tried the much-hyped polenta, and it really was as incredible as everyone says. It is like sinking your spoon into a cloud of cheese and butter. The calamari starter blew us away. It was the most perfect preparation of this ingredient I've ever tried. Not at all chewy and paired with a zesty tomato sauce.
G and my father loved the famous Shikshukit, which is a ground beef dish that builds on the ubiquitous Israeli dish lachmajun.
For mains, G tried the filet mignon, my dad some meat dish I can't remember, and my mother and I split the drum fish. "Drum fish" is called "Mimaakim Karatich" in Hebrew, a play on words on one of the most beautiful verses in the book of Psalms.
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Desserts included Uri's mom's famous semolina cake with tahini ice cream and fruit, Bavarian cream and a homemade cheesecake. Only the first really blew us out of the water, but after the incredible meal we've just had, our standards were pretty high.
Plus, we're not sweets people, so don't take my word on the desserts!
But as the menu changes daily, don't expect to find everything we've tried on your visit!
Concluding Remarks
Overall, even though I looked forward to this meal for months, I can honestly say that it completely surpassed our expectations. My parents, who weren't as excited at the prospect of eating in the heart of one of Israel's dirtiest and loudest markets (though they like Levinsky market in Tel Aviv), could not believe this kind of food was being cooked by mere mortals in their own country.
In short, it was incredible! If you are looking for an equally fantastic restaurant in Tel Aviv, though a little bit fancier, check out Herbert Samuel Restaurant review!
The only downside is that I didn't have my good camera. My apologies, dear reader.
I don't know how they do it, but Machenyuda found the formula for a truly perfect meal.
Check out the Machneyuda Restaurant at Beit Ya'akov 10 Jerusalem.
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