7 Best Restaurants in Israel

Ask any local about their favorite place to eat and they will direct you toward this family restaurant tucked into a small shopping center. The menu has a hearty selection of pastas, pizzas, seafood, and meat dishes, all with a contemporary Middle Eastern touch. It sits opposite Kibbutz Ma'ayan Baruch. Reservations are highly recommended, especially on weekends when the place is packed with locals.

Mo Tahhan opened this cheery café in the space that was once his father's travel agency with the vision of creating a gathering spot as comfy and as fun as your living room at home. Staff often joins patrons for a chat on the bright blue couches and encourages them to add or take from the in-house library stocked with a selection of English-language books. Changing daily specials include maqloubeh, a Palestinian rice and chicken dish, or the bright orange knaffeh, the traditional cheese pastry soaked in syrup, for dessert. Excellent coffee, pastries, Wi-Fi, and in-house printers create a kind of coworking vibe during the day, but the wine list and excellent pastas also attract more serious diners later on.

At this East Jerusalem bistro, the stone walls are hung with local art and antique musical instruments. In summer, you can enjoy your meal on a lovely patio. The menu emphasizes salads—the tabbouleh is a refreshing mix of parsley and cracked wheat—simple pastas, and heavy-hitting meat dishes. The service is efficient and unpretentious, and the well-stocked bar includes local Palestinian Taybeh beer and wine from Bethlehem, along with European imports. Most Thursdays feature live music.

The setting, a charming stone house with both indoor and outdoor seating, lends great atmosphere to this family-run eatery set above the Old City and taking in the view of Mount Meron (the restaurant's name means "paradise"). Gan Eden is best known for its fish, especially fillets of sea bass and sea bream. What they call calzones are actually dumplings stuffed with salty Tzfat cheese and served with a delicious salad of lettuce, cranberries, and walnuts. The place is kosher for dairy, meaning no meat is served.

Chocolate lovers should run, not walk, to this eatery for a mouthwatering, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory experience. Beneath pipes of imaginary chocolate crisscrossing the ceiling, children of all ages can order the likes of chocolate pizza—topped with chocolate chips, of course—or chocolate fondue for dipping toasted marshmallows and fruit like melon, dates, and bananas. There's even chocolate soup! For a souvenir, take home some hand-stenciled pralines in artfully designed tins. And yes, there are non-chocolate options, including pastas and salads. Service is famously iffy but who cares when you can gorge yourself on chocolate?

Stop into this legendary institution, opened in 1940, for coffee and cake, or a meal of spinach blintzes with melted cheese, hamburgers, or Chinese dishes. Three generations of the Oppenheimer family work here, and the walls carry enlarged photographs of how the place looked when just a hut. The management swears that the schnitzel gets accolades from Viennese visitors.

Located in Nimrod, a short drive south of Majdal Shams, this whimsical restaurant is decorated with smiling witch dolls and boasts a magnificent view of volcanic lakes and cherry fields. The staff is attentive and friendly, and the food is hearty. The chef specializes in casseroles, such as salmon cooked with coconut milk, ginger, and oranges. Another tasty dish is the lamb simmered in white wine and served with root vegetables.