19 Best Restaurants in Lower Galilee, Israel

Built on a pier extending into the Sea of Galilee, this family-run restaurant has breathtaking views from seats indoors and outside. This airy, casual spot with wooden tables and metal chairs is something of an institution, and locals keep coming back for the delicious meats—sizzling steaks, succulent goose liver, or long skewers of veal and vegetables, grilled slowly over hickory wood. The bluefin tuna carpaccio, caught by the manager's brother, is a delicacy. Save room for dessert, as all dishes are homemade.

Located in the “holy triangle,” an area north of the Sea of Galilee considered to be one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the world, Magdalena upgrades Galilee-style Arabic food into contemporary gourmet. Using mostly local ingredients, Magdelena’s menu includes Christian--Arab cuisine with influences of Lebanese and Mediterranean traditions. Fish gets the spotlight, but creative dishes of lamb, beef, and seasonal vegetables fill out the menu. The views of hillsides and the lake knock you out.

In a magnificent 19th-century mansion with a Thousand and One Nights atmosphere, this eatery matches its magical setting with excellent Arab cuisine, including interesting salads and kebabs, as well as dishes with Indian and European influences. Pesto and grilled vegetables stuffed in a chicken breast is a good choice, as are the vegetarian dishes. Don't pass up dessert.

At Michal and Avinoam Barkin's goat farm, you can sample excellent cheeses over wine or coffee in the wooden reception room or enjoy a light meal of salads, toasted sandwiches, or hot stuffed pastries. The farm is open Friday 10–2 and Saturday 10–4.

You can't miss Big Ben, just at the top of the boardwalk; this casual spot is practically a landmark. An outdoor terrace with seating overlooks the promenade, and inside, a beautiful antique wooden bar features eight beers on tap. There are more tables indoors, too. The menu covers all the bases: pastas, fish and meat on the grill, chicken schnitzel and fries for the kids. The friendly vibe at this large place is what draws people back: the food is not always the best.

Ranked among the region's best Arab restaurants, Diana doesn't fail to impress. Owner Duhul Safadi is most famous for his kebabs and lamb chops, but the fish and seafood dishes are all equally wonderful. The plant-filled terrace and sophisticated dining room would not be out of place in Tel Aviv.

At lunchtime this popular establishment on the eastern shore bustles with tour groups, but it's a fine dinner option, too. Famous for St. Peter's fish, it has added sea bream, trout, and gray mullet to the menu, as well as entrées such as quiche, pizza, pasta, and salads. In fine weather, sit on the large outdoor terrace, and take in the view across the lake to Tiberias. Watch for the signs for "Kibbutz Inn Ein Gev."

The sweeping panorama from the wooden deck and picture windows is attraction enough at this family restaurant operated by Yossi Mass, his wife Penina, and son Oren. Known for its greens and imaginative salads, it also impresses with homemade bread and tarts of shallot, forest mushroom, and goat cheese, not to mention a colorful pie of beef, lamb, goose, tomatoes, pine nuts, and basil. Desserts make for an agonizing decision, so share.

Recharge in an elegant setting in the Old City, sampling delicious pastries and coffee or perhaps a glass of wine. This small café, set in a 200-year-old building, is run by local architect Razan Zoubi, whose professional studio is upstairs. Around the corner from Al-Reda restaurant but in the same building, Kahala uses Al-Reda's kitchen to create delicious homemade cookies. Nibble a coffee-pecan or tahini-almond biscuit with a perfect espresso as you browse Razan's beautiful collection of Arab-designed modern and ancient architecture books.

You can have a tasty meal and shop, too, at this showcase for creative work produced by the local special-needs community. Peek at the workshops based on anthroposophy (a system for nurturing the individual's healthy core), where community members work in the organic vegetable garden and the bakery, as well as in handweaving, ceramics, and paper-products workshops. Feast on a Galilee-style breakfast made with the organic vegetables grown here, and try homemade sweet potato, beet, and cauliflower spreads. Your food is served on exquisite ceramics, produced here and available for purchase. It's about 15 minutes north of Beit She'arim.

Try the unbeatable Arab pastries at this bakeshop. The place serves wonderful bourma (cylindrical pastries filled with whole pistachio nuts), cashew baklava, and great halvah. Don't confuse this spot with Mahroum Bakery: look for the Arab pastries, not gooey Western cakes.

Marinado started as a cattle ranch and is still a butcher and gourmet food shop. It is the only restaurant in Israel that produces its own meat, wine, and olive oil. The restaurant specializes in beef and has a large indoor seating area and breezy outdoor dining with lovely views of the Kinneret. The restaurant also has several branches in and near Tel Aviv, although this is its flagship location.

This faux-Chinese temple has an outdoor patio overlooking the lake, and across the road is a maze of more intimate rooms entered through a garden. The kosher menu of various Asian cuisines and some international favorites is identical at both places, so pick your favorite and try the Thai soups (such as the tasty hot-and-sour soup), the lamb spareribs, or strips of beef with peanut sauce. There's a sushi bar, too.

An impressive brick building and a terrace with lovely views of the Sea of Galilee are great draws. The dairy and salad menu of this bistro, bar, and café has a fine selection of breakfast dishes, salads, pasta, calzones, sandwiches, quiche, and desserts. Locals rave about the cheese blintzes with sweet cheese and raisins. There is music most evenings, plus air-conditioning and a full bar.

With a menu in English, Arabic, Italian, and Hebrew, Ronen Mansour serves a nice Israeli breakfast, and in the afternoon and evening you can order pasta, pizza, fish, and meat dishes that appeal to everyone. The restaurant is clean and simple, with murals of Italy decorating the walls. Delivery is available to local hotels.

This imposing restaurant commanding the corner as you enter Beit She'an offers friendly service in a sparkling clean dining room. Don’t fill up on the fresh homemade salads; the grilled meat is delicious, too.

No fewer than 20 fresh salads of seasonal produce and traditional recipes arrive at your table in this large and efficient dining room. Catering to busloads of tourists, the dining room is surprisingly quiet, and small groups do not feel outnumbered. Fish is the star, but traditional favorites like grilled beef and lamb are also exceptional.

The tile floors, stone walls, and dim lighting at this restaurant and bar named after a month on the Muslim calendar are the perfect setting for the Middle Eastern menu. Known for the wood-burning oven from which fresh breads emerge, this restaurant is big on kebabs and eggplant stuffed with pesto and cheese. Alcohol is served, too.

This quiet, modern café is a good place for a meal anytime. The menu features pasta, pizza, and salads as well as breakfast items. There is outdoor seating, but ask for a table inside near the window to enjoy the Wi-Fi, air-conditioning, and people-watching.