Subkuch Milega

Date: May 17, 2010 (before Shavuot)
Name: Subkuch Milega
Address: 22 Hamashbir st, (Florentine) Tel Aviv

When we adventure, we adventure. When we go hiking, we take a map but when we have urban adventures, things are a little more spontaneous.

We started our day in the Herzeliya Marina, where we experienced two amazing forces intersecting: Couchsurfers' generosity and the beauty of sailing.
After basking in the awesomeness of sailing (and the sun), we headed to Tel Aviv to continue the adventure. A short and productive visit to the flea market and it was time for dinner.

Do you have the address? Um... Let's ask those people. Maybe it's over here. No, over there. Excuse me, do you know where... I think it's really far! Are you sure you want to walk all the way there? Maybe we can find the address in a phone book... Didn't they replace the phone book with Google?!?

Finally, we made it!

Subkuch Milega tries to replicate the experience of an Indian guesthouse in Tel Aviv. It's located in the Florentine neighborhood which hosts many shanty Israelis who long for the mother-ship, India. The upper floors are a hostel, and the restaurant occupies the first floor and courtyard.

We chose to sit outside, where there were low tables and many battered, colorful mattresses and cushions. The walls had a number of authentic art pieces.

Per our waitress' suggestion, we ordered a platter with a few different dishes. And we waited. And waited. And waited. The chef must have hopped on over to the subcontinent to pick up some ingredients, because it took about 45 minutes until our food arrived. Luckily, we came across a shesh-besh board (backgammon) and kept ourselves entertained (read: confused, due to the non-traditional game pieces and die). Cookie Goddess proved... you never know when you might need a Scrabble letter (or two).

Our food finally arrived and we dug in. Dipping naan in sauces, tasting the lentils... But we slowly realized that culinary journalism has its challenges. In addition to the long wait, we found ourselves facing mediocre food, lacking exciting flavors and textures. Tepid at best, the food was nothing to write home (or a blog) about. Plus, it was expensive, priced quite high for an Israeli meal, let alone an Indian one.

Not all was lost. We began the day as guests aboard a Couchsurfer's yacht, and ended the day in Couchsurfing spirit, by giving advice to travelers. During our meal, we overheard (ok, eavesdropped) an Anglo girl talking to two Israeli men. She was asking about sites to see, places to visit, and Jerusalem. Once the Israeli men left, we turned around and offered our two cents. As die-hard Jerusalemites, we had plenty of advice and ideas of how she should spend her time in our cool (and holy) city. We parted ways, but not before writing out a list of places, phone numbers and even a hand-drawn map or two.

Despite the Indian meal being the low-point in our day, we overcame the extreme difficulties and managed to enjoy our adventures on sea and land. One more place checked off the list.