The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same

Date: August 2021
Name: Jeera
Address: 7 Heleni HaMalka, Jerusalem 

Welcome back, loyal reader(s). It's been a while. Not because we've been siting around, waiting for the perfect curry to come our way, but because, well, you know - life. First, every single Indian place in Jerusalem closed. Almora, Ichikidana - gone. Next, our lives took some interesting twists and turns - new co-pilots, new passengers, and with them - new experiences. Culinary meanderings in London and New York, exposing new passengers to new flavors and textures, and going domestic.

Fortunately for us homebodies, 2020/21 was the year of staying home. We stared our fridge in the eye, spent 65.3% of our waking time wondering what to make for dinner, then stared at our fridge some more. In short, our lives were a never-ending meditation on what to cook for the next meal, spiced with the (more than) occasional ordering in.

This tedium lasted many months - but who's counting? Come to think of it, who's counting anything anymore? Does anyone even remember whether we've had more lock-downs or more elections?

Yet suddenly, D began hearing rumors that spiked her interest - a new Indian place in Jerusalem! As if this alone wasn't miraculous enough, she and her copilot (N) actually managed to sneak away, under the cover of darkness, on a reconnaissance mission to scope the place out and ensure it was blog-worthy.

Within a few hours, R's phone buzzed. The picture she saw piqued her curiosity - it seemed to be depicting samosas and dahl. She wondered where in the world D and N might be. She replied with a starry eyed emoji and waited patiently for more details. And they were soon to come, along with a five-star review. 

A few days later, D and R went for lunch, resurrecting their long-lasting tradition of celebrating their anniversary of friendship, adventure, and blog posts - which had been forgotten, swallowed by the aforementioned life and tedium. Some things change, some stay the same. 

Our destination was Jeera. A hole-in-the-wall kitchen just off Jaffa St. and close to the city's light rail. For such a small place, it had a decent number of tables and chairs set up on the sidewalk. We found a shady spot, making sure that D's tiny passenger was comfortable. Usually outside the scope of this blog, D also wanted to hear R's opinion of the chairs. A brief glance at the menu and we ordered the Double Thali Special. We were still sitting comfortably when our food arrived. 

Everything was delicious: a large platter of thali, malai kofta, naan, rice, and an assortment of colorful dishes. The samosas were amazing, just as they should be - crispy on the outside, soft and seasoned inside. YUM!! The spicy chickpeas went well with the rice, and a tangy yogurt and chutney nicely balanced sweetness to the spices. After such a long time without a decent Indian meal, we were in seventh heaven. Our one suggestion for improvement is to include rice with each entrée, rather than requiring it to be ordered separately.

In fact, we were experiencing such a curry-high that we kind of forgot ourselves. We began chatting with Tom, the proprietor. He's a young fellow who'd began doing deliveries out of his kitchen during the first lock-down, which grew into a restaurant, which opened its door four months ago. For the sake of journalistic integrity (and, let's face it, we were simply thrilled), we told him about our blog with all the humility worthy of a two-writer, half-reader, and long-ignored endeavor. We promised to return and spread the word!

Tom, thank you for being here. We wish Jeera success and pledge to do our part to support your amazing restaurant. Oh, and your chairs are awesome.

Rice Flour

A couple of years ago T came into our lives. A very sweet, helpful woman from south India that speaks malayalam and excellent English. She quickly learned all of my grandmothers recipes for mandel bread cookies, potato kugel, and eggplant parmesan. 

When she goes to the market, she makes a special stop at the asian food market and buys ingredients for her own food. Spices that remind her of home, vegetables and rice flour. An Indian cook, right at our doorstep, but not our own. 

One day, after hinting elegantlly that as much as I love my grandma's food, an Indian meal would be kinda awesome, T hosted us for a meal. I was just on a vegan not gluten diet and it was lent, so she was also vegan for the week. As soon as I entered the house, the smell of authentic Indian food was everywhere. Right after the hug to my grandma, I was immediately given a chair and a plate and the feast began. Appam Rice flour pancakes, spicy vegetable kurma stew, flatbread, curried potatoes and for desert Bengka Ubi Kayu a sweet tapioca cake. 

After the delicious meal, I was given recipes and tips on how to recreate the dishes myself, but I know it won't come out the same... 

After years of hunting for Indian food in Israel, it's nice that sometimes Indian food finds me. 

Thanks T, 

നന്ദി! 

Fidel and Vancouver

Fidel Castro died last night in Cuba.
People in Cuba will be mourning him for nine whole days while Cuban immigrants and refugees in Miami celebrate his death. The revolutionary's death has nothing to do with Indian food, but it did make me think about a meal I shared at a little Indian place in Vancouver last fall.

Last year I was visiting Washington state for a wedding. I flew across the world to attend what I knew was going to be a beautiful event and had a few days to explore the area after the wedding celebrations were over. Since I like crossing a border whenever possible, I chose to visit Vancouver which was just a couple of hours away from where I was staying. Traveling alone, a youth hostel seemed like the way to go and I ended up in a SameSun hostel in a good location of town. My day pack and myself found ourselves in a hip, young hostel, taking the last top bunk bed in a tight room of eight woman. Although it took me a while to convince myself to climb the ladder up to bed, it ended up as one of the most comfortable beds I've slept in while traveling! One of the perks at this particular hostel was free breakfast and daily organized tours of the area. During breakfast things already seemed a bit brighter and I decided to join the tour to Vancouver Island.
About ten of us set out that morning, the weather was beautiful as is the city. Everyone was nice, but it didn't take long for me to connect to a couple, about my age, who were traveling across the west coast for their honeymoon. They had been to many places I was planning on going so we had that in common too. The two of them set out from Miami and had been traveling for about two months. After the tour, we went to grab lunch at Crave India, the Indian place across from the hostel.


As we came in, the young man at the counter was busy chasing out a drunk who didn't want to pay or leave and was cursing up a storm. Once that was done, he was very helpful and nice. At this small, family run restaurant, you can get good food, enough vegetarian options and really delicious Naan at a fair price for travelers. We enjoyed a good meal, and good company.

Once we settled in, they told me about their recent wedding which they had planned for over a year.
The woman (let's call her Karen) shared her experience meeting the man's (let's call him Francisco) large Cuban family, getting used to their food and culture. They told me stories of how his family crossed the border to the United States, fleeing Cuba to find a better future. I learned about the "wet foot, dry foot" immigration and about the different ways people came from Cuba to America.
Francisco was very connected to his culture and heritage and was happy to share his families stories with me.

Tonight, when the world is talking about Fidel Castro's Cuba, my mind wanders to the small Indian restaurant in Vancouver and a young Miami couple on their honeymoon. What side of the border do they find themselves on and are they mourning or celebrating.

When you Wish upon a Star (in Beersheva)

Date: Aug. 11 2016
Name: Little India
Address: 15 Ringelblum, Beer Sheva 

Hello loyal readers! It's been a while - although I'm sure there has been Indian food in the intermittent years (!!), we've probably been too busy to share our witty and humorous culinary observations. This is our blog's third review of Little India, which is still going strong (the restaurant definitely so, the blog questionably so). The restaurant now occupies the entire deck and features both low-table and table-and-chair seating arrangements. The menu has pretty much stayed the same, but a while back they got rid of the lunch buffet. 

When we started this blog, R and I imagined that we'd become experts in Indian food. Culinary fanatics, highlighting the nuanced use of green cardamom, suggesting recipes for homemade paneer, and being asked to review Indian food world-wide (or at least Israel-wide). 

Alas - not only do we struggle to maintain this blog, but we have also fallen short of becoming world-renown foodies. We have come to accept that our blog is more about the journey, the story, the people  - and less about the actual food (although we know a killer samosa when we taste it, and will call out frozen vegetables wherever they may lurk).

Journeys can be divided into two types: those with a destination and those without. Most tangible journeys are of the former variety. You walk out your front door, and arrive at school. You board an airplane and arrive in Mongolia. You weave your way through town, crossing errands off your list. 

The latter journeys are much more interesting. Going without knowing where you will end up. Opening yourself to adventures, submerging yourself in the experience, accepting the flow and submitting to it. Going for the sake of going. Being for the sake of being. Growing into your role within the journey, negotiating the fine balance between personal space and that which is shared. 

Such a journey led me to share this amazing meal with an amazing person (two in fact, but one was just along for the destination-oriented ride). Here's to good food, good times, and journey-worthy companions. 

One, Two, or Three?

Date: July 3, 2014
Name: Namaste
Address: 10 HaTayelet, Mei Ami Beach, Ashdod

Life has taken us many places, but yet to Ashdod. The ladies are busy with numbers, picking one, a one, the one. R has chosen, while D is facing an impossible (and potentially hypothetical) choice: one, two or three?

This blog-post is dedicated to No. 3, which you might think would be indicative of success. Read on.

Curiously, it was not my idea to visit Namaste. I hadn't even realized there was Indian food in Ashdod. In fact, I hadn't realized Ashdod had more than a central bus station, Frenchies, and beach (and jellyfish).

From the outside, Namaste looked promising: the entire complex feels like it was transplanted from India (see pictures). The menu wasn't extremely extensive, but covered a lot. No. 3 preferred vegetarian, and D played along. We decided to share samosas, vegetable curry, and a rice dish with vegetables. We sat down, and I managed to drop my knife on the floor.

Meanwhile, they brought us papadum and delicious chutneys (mint-cilantro, tamarind, and a delicious pickled lemon). The samosas were good - the dough slightly thicker than usual, but fragrant and tasty. Luckily, I didn't need a knife to eat them.

Our main course was delivered half-way through the samosas - a bit too soon. Still waiting for a new knife. The vegetable curry was ... there is no other way to put it: the ultimate culinary transgression. I'm not even going into the (alleged) curry sauce, which was dark, but not even vaguely resembling curry as we know it. Brace yourself: the vegetables were green beans, corn, peas, and carrots. Yes, yes, frozen vegetables. In Israel, in the summer. There is no lack of fresh vegetables in our world - in fact, the menu promised garden veggies, hinting at something fresh and seasonal.

The waitress had said we could share the rice dish, and it was priced accordingly. This suggests that she is used to diners leaving the restaurant hungry. D is, by no means, a big eater. The rice was definitely not enough for two diners. It featured rice (duh), vegetables (see above), a few raisins, and cashews. The seasoning was far from anything noteworthy. D found herself picking out the raisins and dousing the food in chutneys (not necessarily in that order).

To summarize the evening: The beach was lovely (even with jellyfish) and I finished my wonderful book. And I managed two solid naps on the bus ride. Let's leave it at that.

And the knife....? D got up, and swiped a new knife from another table.

Lassi and Tents and Rain, Oh My!

Date: Oct. 31, 2013
Name: Little India
Address: 15 Ringelblum, Beer Sheva 

While R and I work extremely hard to maintain this blog (and the others), the other half of our Quartet does not always prioritize our culinary adventures. Once in a while it works out... This time around, we were heading towards an amazing vacation. To celebrate N's 32nd (while denying D's 32nd and R's impending 32nd) we decided to head down south. For years, N has wanted to stay at a particular desert tent, while D is generally in love with the Makhtesh Ramon (and rocks).

We left Thursday afternoon, to maximize our time down south, and drove through Be'er Sheva. Of course, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to stop for some Indian nosh. The other M met us, and we dined on samosas and split a few other dishes. Everything was delicious - and we even had leftovers. Stuffed, we headed back on the road to beautiful, quiet Mitzpe Ramon. 

While the vacation started out on a delicious note, it is worth sharing some experiences from the rest of our adventure. Our Friday hike took us into a sand storm, followed by rain and lightening, which all somehow cleared up by the time we returned to the car. On Saturday we couldn't find a flood, but did end up in a second rainstorm. Soaked almost to the bone, by the time we returned there was a humongous rainbow across the sky. This is D's attempt at taking a panoramic picture, featuring the rainbow (L) and sunset (R). 

Goodbye, Ichikidana

Date: Sept. 27, 2013
Name: Ichikidana
Address:  Mahane Yehuda, Jerusalem 

Featured on this blog before, Ichikidana was a Jerusalem gem. Decently priced, varied  menus, vegan/vegetarian, and delicious. A few months back, I'd interviewed the owner, Lehava, for a pilot radio story about Jerusalem eateries who serve kosher food, yet refuse to pay the rabbinate for a certificate. 

At that time, Lehava had told me she was closing, but swore me to silence. Rent had become too much, and she preferred to continue cooking as a catering service. She hadn't given me an exact date. One warm Friday, R and I spontaneously decided to head over for lunch. Lo and behold, a sign announced it was their last day. 

We had samosas and shared some deliciousness. Our spontaneous lunch meant no camera, but believe us, the food was amazing. We wish Lehava the best of luck in all her future endeavors, culinary and otherwise!