Poke- A Taste of Hawaii in the Heart of Tel Aviv

Over the past year, Ibn Gabirol Street has become the culinary center of Tel Aviv.  Among its gems are Chef Eyal Shani’s masterpiece Miznon, the best burger in town Vitrina  and the most recent, Joseph n Sons  Fish n’Chips. The newest street food addition to Ibn Gabirol is Poke, who made aliyah all the way from Hawaii.

Meet the dish that had taken over the world this past year. Around the world, from LA, NYC and all the way to Australia, there are over 65 Poke-themed restaurants. Now, Tel Aviv has been added to this list! Poke, located on Ibn Gabirol, features a dish originally from Hawaii which is a delicious bowl of rice (white or whole wheat) with your choice of fresh fish or tofu, vegetables ,and sauces, with the main ingredient being a type of protein presented in small cubes. The restaurant has only been open for a few weeks, but already has a strong following. The service is a bit slow, but I believe over time they will speed up the process.

Upon entering the restaurant, the staff will ask which rice you prefer – I recommend the whole wheat. Next, you decide which seasoned vegetables you want in your Poke, the trendy choice is broccoli or kale. You then choose the type of fish- white fish ( 40 NIS ) , tuna ( 44 NIS ) or salmon ( 38 NIS) , or a vegan option – tofu ( 34 NIS ) or Portobello mushrooms ( 34 NIS ) . I recommend for those who like fish that you order a mixed fish where you can select two different kinds of fish ( 45 NIS).

Then you move on to the vegetables that will be added to the dish , including broccoli , green beans , soybeans , avocados , fruit in season , wakame seaweed and many others. The dish is completed with the house dressing as well as a variety of sauces such as spicy mayo , chimichurri , and citrus vinaigrette , mango chili , wasabi avocado and more. The final step is adding the topping to the dish – I recommend the black sesame and peanuts toppings. Some of the other toppings available are tobiko , black/white sesame, nori powder , chia seeds , peanuts and more. They also offer fresh juices they make in house.

Overall, the dish is filling and very affordable and, with time, the speed of delivery will improve. For people looking for a unique healthy lunch or a light dinner, Poke is a great option

NOT KOSHER

Address: Ibn Gabirol 20

Hours:  Sunday-Thursday 10AM-Midnight, Friday 10AM-3PM and Saturday 3PM-Midnight

 

Shi Shi- A Modern Twist of Sushi

For the past 10 years in Tel Aviv sushi has been the entire rave throughout the city. Recently, sushi has taken the back seat to new and exciting cuisine options. While these new culture foods have emerged, sushi has lost its cool.  Locals in Tel Aviv have become sushi snobs and have become bored. Following a trend started in New York, a new and modern twist on sushi has arrived, it’s called Shi-Shi.

Shi-Shi is located on the Corner of Ibn Gabirol and Naviim Street right across from London Minister. They provide an upbeat urban style with seating around a small indoor bar with outdoor wooden benches which meshes with the exciting and fast paced life of Tel Aviv. Concerning  the food, they offer different innovative variations of enlarged sushi. Each dish is based on rice with different filling and sauces that are fresh and will surprise you with their robust flavor.

So what is this dish? Shi-Shi is an even larger and healthier sushi. The dish itself is based on rice with differ choices of fillings with unique, flavorful sauces. Each large sushi roll is rolled to perfection with no dripping and can be eaten in place or take away.

Shi-Shi comes in 10 different variations – filling of fish and seafood, chicken, tofu and vegetables or fruit. Each customer chooses from different spicy sauces and fillings which are wrapped in rice.  One of their best rolls (my favorite) is chipotle vinaigrette marinated salmon with miso sauce and mango, ginger, carrots, beets, green herbs, cucumber and mango salad with spicy peanuts. Another roll I recommend is the chicken based roll which includes chicken breast curry-aioli, pickled kohlrabi, red cabbage, lettuce and green onions. For those looking for vegetarian options try the wasabi aioli-sweet potato tempura which is cooked with a fried tofu sauce.

Aside from Shi-Shi, they offer a delicious dish which is served with a base of seafood or chicken served on chapatti with special sauces such as chimichurri, aioli-asian and wasabi. Other non-sushi options are Asian salad of glass noodles with chicken, salmon or tofu. For those looking unique beverages, they offer different specialty drinks such as ginger and lemon beverage and green tea.

NOT KOSHER

Average price: 40 NIS

Address: Ibn Gabirol 33

Hours: Sunday-Thursday 12PM-11PM, Friday 12PM-5PM and Saturday 5PM-11PM