Food and Drink

Vivacious Tel Aviv

By Charlene Rooke

How to experience Israel’s famous party scene without sacrificing sophistication.

This year is the 100th anniversary of the founding of Tel Aviv, and you could say the city has come of age. Well, judging from the look of the tanned, stylish crowds that pack its wide boulevards and back lanes on the average weeknight (Friday is the Sabbath, so Wednesday and Thursday are the big going-out nights), perhaps just barely of age. A lively mix of local urbanites and international revellers make Tel Aviv’s nightlife a must-see scene, even if you choose to see it from the relative serenity of a trendy terrace or chic cocktail bar. Here’s how it’s done.

The ultimate Tel Aviv night actually starts during the day with a dip in the Mediterranean followed by cocktails and seafood appetizers at beachside bars like Manta Ray. When the sun goes down, hit Haarba’a Street in the city centre – you’ll find lots of small restaurants, all within steps of each other, where locals start a night on the town. Messa serves French-inflected Israeli cuisine to the beautiful people in a sexy modern space. Tapeo serves Spanish tapas for a Middle Eastern palate in a fun, raucous atmosphere, and Onami is one of the locals’ favourites for Japanese, which is saying something in this sushi-obsessed city. You’re a short walk from Dizengoff Street, with dozens of specimens of the city’s iconic Bauhaus architecture, like the cool Cinema Hotel, housed in an old theatre.

Tel Aviv is mad for bubbly right now. While expensive French champagne flows at many nightspots, we liked the humble little bar La Champa for its well-priced tapas and bargain bottles of Spanish cava. You’ll spot it by the hipsters spilling out onto the sidewalk, vintage champagne coupes in hand, sipping, flirting and chatting the night away.

To be outside with all the comforts of indoors, ask for patio seating at the light-strung, plant-shaded courtyard of Nana Bar, a hangout in the gentrified Neve Tzedek neighbourhood that attracts a slightly more sophisticated crowd. The menu has an exceptional selection of anise-flavoured spirits (which Tel Avivers drink over ice, with soda and fresh mint leaves), aperitifs and digestifs. The bar’s owner recently opened the elegant, modern Neve Tzedek Hotel, which has just five exquisite suites in a beautifully renovated old mansion.

If you’re in the mood to really cut loose, join the partiers dancing on the bar every night at Nanuchka, a crowded bistro and bar that feels like your eccentric auntie’s parlour. The Georgian-style food is surprisingly good, but dine early if you don’t want a stiletto in your kibbe.

If you venture south to the Jaffa side of the city, the place to party is the renowned Jaffa Bar, a cluttered, cozy and haphazard-looking spot tucked inauspiciously into one of the quaint stone streets of Old Jaffa. It’s adjacent to famed chef Nir Zook’s Cordelia restaurant, where the seven-course chef’s tasting menu is de rigueur.

Finally, end your evening at Brasserie M&R, open 24 hours and a hangout for everyone from artists to diplomats. Classic rib-sticking French fare like beef bourguignon or steak tartare will get you through the night – or the morning.

(Charlene Rooke, editor in chief of Western Living magazine, is a Vancouver-based travel writer, voracious foodie, and ardent architect groupie.)

Useful information

Tapeo, 16 Haarba’a St., 03-624-0484
Onami, 18 Haarba’a St., 03-562-1172
La Champa, 52 Rehov Nahalat Binyamin, 077-200-8636
Nana Bar, 1 Ahad Ha’am St., 03-516-1915
Nanuchka, 28 Lilienblum St., 03-516-2254
Jaffa Bar, 30 Yefet St., 03-518-4668

TOP IMAGE: COURTESY MANTA RAY
REMAINING PHOTOS: MARY BLOOM / WWW.TELAVIV4FUN.COM