Trendy Tel Aviv is a hearty foodie find – Languages and cultures coexist in their own food universe at the center of Israel. | Washington Post

Trendy Tel Aviv is a hearty foodie find – Languages and cultures coexist in their own food universe at the center of Israel. | Washington Post

“That’s all you’re eating, chérie? You crazy?” shrieks Julie Ozen, bracelets dangling, gray hair high in a tight bun. She’s not my grandma, but she might as well be. On my plate, today’s specials include artichoke hearts and figs stuffed with beef in a lemon and mint sauce, whole beets cradling a mix of rice, lentils and nuts, and plump fish balls — a sampling of the Egyptian dishes her mother taught her back in Cairo. A few streets away, the seductive tangy aroma of hawayej, a Yemenite spice mix used to jazz up soup and pastries, woos diners into a simple eatery. Across the alley, local hipsters line up for a stool at an outdoor Venezuelan “arepa bar.”