Israel has always been a popular Christmas and winter holiday destination, and tourism seems to have stabilized since hostilities with Hamas subsided with a truce earlier this year.
The first destination for visitors is typically Tel Aviv, where, after landing at Ben Gurion International Airport, tourists take advantage of the city’s location on the Mediterranean Sea. After that, exploring the rest of the country is an easy goal in a nation this size. At 8,019 square miles, Israel is smaller than New Jersey.
But one city, Jerusalem, is almost always on the agenda.
There is nothing like Jerusalem’s Old City, where a rabbit warren of narrow stone walks wind through the Jewish Quarter, Christian Quarter, Armenian Quarter and Muslim Quarter. It’s a must-visit destination filled with holy sites. But many of the Old City’s shops and restaurants are geared to tourist groups.
To avoid that scene and sample exotic and locally sourced foods, head for Machane Yehuda, a pedestrian market where the locals go near Jerusalem’s City Center.
Begun as an open-air food market in the late 1800s outside the Old City’s walls to accommodate other neighborhoods and villages, Machane Yehuda now overflows its original area with more than 250 food stalls, cafes, shops and restaurants that are constantly expanding to bordering streets.
The market, called a shuk, extends roughly between Agripas Street on the south and Jaffa Road on the north. Beit Yaakov Street is considered its western border and Kiach Street its eastern edge.
But if pressed for time, do its 10-street grid. Walk up the wide, open-air Machane Yehuda Street going north from Agripas and back south on the wide, covered Etz HaChaim Street by wandering through the shorter, narrower covered streets between and across from them.
As you meander the grid, shoulder to shoulder with local shoppers in traditional and contemporary garb, you will find yourself in a world that feels both exotic and familiar.
Yummy goat cheese, Samoa hummus, Moroccan halva, Georgian stuffed pastries, Indian spices, olives, nuts and dried fruits line walkways around corners from flowers, household goods, fabrics and jewelry shops. Scattered among them are such cleverly named lunch and supper spots as Pasta Basta and Fishenchips.
Bring your appetite. You can sample foods listed on a Shuk Bites Card purchased ahead of time on the Machane Yehuda website (see below) or at Musseri, a tobacco and sundries shop at 77 Etz HaChaim St. in the market. But it will probably be tough to pass up places not on the card. And definitely save room for lunch or noshes at a cafe.
There are enough stands and cafes in the grid, let alone in the entire shuk and on its edges, to fill a day. Indeed, some Tel Aviv residents and people from other towns drive to Jerusalem just to shop their favorite Machane places.
Basher Fromagerie is on the Shuk Bites list. But even if you’re not buying the card, stop there at 53 Etz HaChaim St. because everyone does. Owner Eli Basher and his staff are happy to talk about their hundreds of cheeses. As the Fromagerie name suggests, Basher goes to France, particularly the Rungis market outside Paris, to scout out more cheeses.
Then, go to 81 Pilas (the address is also its name) on Etz HaChaim for pastry, or look for No. 12 on the street for the Halva Kingdom’s nearly 100 halva varieties.
From the north between Machane Yehuda and Etz Hachaim Streets, stop at the juice bar at 1 HaTapuach St. (the address is also the name) operated by David Boneh and his family. They will be happy to explain their juices’ healthy properties.
If you see a man carrying a basket of breads high above the crowd, he is likely headed to Teller Bakery at HaAgas and Etz HaChaim Streets. Teller’s products are made at the main bakery on Agripas Street. If you have no nut allergy, look for Pitzuchim BaShuk’s long shop at 14-16 Eliyahu Banai-HaAgas St.
If you’re interested in linens, housewares, knitted items and jewelry, go down HaAfarsek Street.
On HaShazif, the next street south, stalls range from household items to cookies, but shoppers take a break at Cafe Mizrachi at No. 6, where the menu reflects the Cordon-Bleu training of owner Eli Mizrachi’s daughter Moran.
Walk HaShaked Street for nuts and fruit. HaEgoz Street cuts across from HaShaked to HaTut. Look for flowers, coffee and jewelry. But you have to stop at Uzi-Eli, 10 HaEgoz St., if not to taste Uzi-Eli Chezi’s herbal concoctions, at least to ask him about them. At No. 6 look for Pri HaAdama, a cooperative of ceramic artists.
Even though the streets are short and narrow, some have cut-across alleys and streets that change names. But you won’t get lost because the cross streets eventually connect to Machane Yehuda.
On Machane Yehuda, find yarmulkes and tourist items at Kippa Man, No. 26, and take in the fragrant spices at Mimom, No. 18.
Then cross Machane Yehuda to HaEshkol Street, opposite HaAfarsek Street, for unusual sorbets and good coffee at Mousseline Jerusalem, No. 6. For a croque-monsieur with salmon or mushrooms, stop at Mimi’s Bistro, No. 4.
Restaurants on the edge of the market: For delicious falafel, look for the Falafel Meuleh stand with its handful of bistro tables at Beit Ya’akov and HaRav Shmuel Baruch streets. Reserve a table for upscale nosh or dinner of tuna tartare with artichokes, Israeli sea bass and cheesecake in a jar at Machneyuda, 10 Beit Ya’akov St., machneyuda.co.il/en. Find atmosphere, wine/cheese tastings and entrees that combine eggplant, figs or salmon with various cheeses at Basher Resto Cheese Bar, 21 Agripas St. jerusalemrestaurant.co.il/en
If you go
For maps and more information, go to the Machane Yehuda website at machne.co.il/en.
Tips: Market shops and most restaurants close for the Sabbath about 11/2 hours before sundown on Friday. Some restaurants reopen 11/2 hours after sunset Saturday. The market is also a fun destination weeknights, when bars and restaurants feature musical entertainment. Don’t worry about shop or street spellings or if an address number is listed first or last. Agripas can also have two p’s, street names are often shortened in addresses and a shop’s name with a “c” may be a “k” on another list.
