Haifa Street Food

This street is called Independence Street. Haifa owes its development to the British. It was they who built the port at the beginning of the 20th century. Together with the port, this street and the railway station. Today, the station bears the name Ashmona in honor of the eight depot workers who died from a direct missile hit during the Second Lebanon War in the summer of 2006. We can say that English Haifa began here. Translated with Google Translate

Shwarma or shuarma, as this dish is called in Israel, was born in the 19th century in the Middle East and very quickly spread throughout the cities and villages of the Turkish Ottoman Empire. The name means "to twirl" "to rotate" in Arabic and is a direct borrowing of the Turkish chevirme - to twist. The whole cooking method is based on the constant rotation of a vertical knitting needle on which puff pieces of meat are fried. Initially, only lamb meat was used. Over time, they began to use beef, veal, chicken and turkey meat. Local cooking traditions emerged in different parts of the Turkish Empire. For example, in Greece it is gyros, and in Mexico, where emigrants from the Middle East arrived, Shuarma became a dish Al fastor or Facos al Pastor. Even in Israel, there is a difference between the Jerusalem, Jaffa and Haifa cooking methods. Haifa is closer to the Lebanese recipe and retains the tradition of using lamb. Nimer is the Arabic equivalent of the Hebrew Namer - that is, cheetah. It is a very popular male Arabic Christian name in the north of the country and in Lebanon. When the phrase Shvarma Nimer is pronounced, it means that the meat will be lamb, it will be served in pita bread, in a thin pita bread - lafe, or in a French baguette. Seasonings will be - hummus, tkhina, but "amba" (liquid seasoning from pickled mango) and spicy skhug - this is already a tribute to the influences of Jaffa and Jerusalem.

Photo: By FotoosVanRobin from Netherlands - Endive Mash with Lamb ShawarmaUploaded by Partyzan_XXI, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8186356 Photo: By cyclonebill - ShawarmaUploaded by Partyzan_XXI, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8186401 Photo: By Hill93 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47618784 Translated with Google Translate

During the Turkish Ottoman Empire, it was the current street of Jaffa that turned into an important road that went south to Jaffa. Built by the British, Atzmaut Street, parallel to it, was originally called King George the Fifth Street. It was built on an artificial embankment, which created a deep pier and which reclaimed a gentle space from the sea for the construction of a new transport artery: King George Street and the railway. Today this part of the city is very picturesque and abounds in beautiful old houses and small eateries. Only on this patch, in addition to the recommended Nimer shuarma, there is also a wonderful Strudel restaurant. But, since he does not fall into the Street Food category, they talk about him on another excursion. Translated with Google Translate

This is a very interesting and special bakery. Its full name is Pat Steinbach Electric Bakery. There is both irony and wisdom in this name at the same time. At the beginning of the last century, the industrial face of business was fashionable and served into the hands of what is today called marketing. In 1922, a family of hereditary bakeries from Poland settled in a developing pearl by the sea - English Haifa and opened two bakeries. One on Adar on the first floor of his house, and the other here in the lower town - the heart of the English business world. Things were going well and Aba Pat, the grandfather of the current owner of Ofer's bakery, was proud to have an electric dough mixer. This is why the name mentions an electric bakery. Today the opposite is true. No industrial residue. Exclusively handmade and using natural yeast-free sourdough culture. So, over a hundred years, the bakery has gone from a big business to a small business boutique, which is known and appreciated not only in Haifa, but also in other cities of the country, where the Steinbachs opened their production. For example, the famous Jerusalem Lehem Pat or Lehem Pat in Ramat Gan. Pat bread is delicious, fragrant, based on homemade sourdough and selected varieties of wheat. Translated with Google Translate

This building was built for the Haifa branch of the Anglo Palestine Bank, which began operations in London in the early 20th century. For many years, the director of this bank was Zalman David Levontin, a native of Orsha, the founder of the city of Rishon LeZion. Thanks to the activities of this bank, numerous lands were acquired by Jewish settlers. Adar region, Jezreel Valley, lands in the central and southern parts of the country. Over time, this bank grew into the well-known bank Leumi today. Not without investment in culinary establishments. This small business sector is the largest in Israel to this day. Translated with Google Translate

Even before the French Revolution in England, Sir Edward Gibbon described the concept of a sandwich. This man is known to all lovers of history thanks to his monumental work: "The Development and Fall of the Roman Empire" and is known to every culinary specialist thanks to the description of a sandwich: two slices of bread between which are sandwiched with slices of meat or other filling are called a sandwich. Not to be confused with a sandwich where there is only one slice of bread on which the filling is located. They say that a contemporary of Gibbon, an inveterate gambler John Montague, the Earl of Sandwich, invented this dish so as not to be distracted from the game and not to get your hands dirty. Be that as it may, the sandwich is more than 250 years old, its popularity is not diminishing, and the variety is only growing. Here, on Natanzon Street - the heart of the English business center, is one of the most popular sandwich bars in Haifa. Translated with Google Translate

When we talk about the port and the port business part of the city, one cannot fail to mention one of the most widespread and popular cuisines of such places - Italian cuisine. The most popular dish of course is pizza. Many researchers tend to believe that pizza has its roots in the Roman world, in which there was a system of street fast food - thermopoly. Unlike taverns, which can be compared to modern restaurants, thermopolies served warm food to poor and needy people who could not prepare warm food at home. It was mainly bread with various additives. It was on this basis that pizza was born in Naples in 1522 with the addition of New World tomatoes. Pizza took root so quickly and successfully in Naples that it was even believed that Margarita of Savoy, wife of King Umberto the First, put this dish at the top of the table. Hence the name of the pizza - Margarita pizza. In Donatella, you will find not only pizza, but also various other dishes of Italian cuisine, and in Italian Danatella is a woman's name. Translated with Google Translate

El Jariine Mosque was the main mosque of Turkish Haifa. It was built in honor of the victory of the Turkish admiral Hasan Pasha over the rebellious Bedouin ruler of Akko - Dar el Omar in 1775. But what is noticeable today and has become the hallmark of the lower city is the clock tower, which was added to the mosque at the end of the 19th century. Such clock towers were built in various cities of the Turkish Empire to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the reign of Sultan Abd El Hamid. There is such a tower in Jaffa, Akko and Safed, and in Jerusalem it stood in front of the Jafa gate, but was dismantled. Haifa's Turkish heritage has left iconic dishes such as hummus, falafel and burekas. They will be discussed further.

photo: מאת Hanay - נוצר על ידי מעלה היצירה, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12706697 Translated with Google Translate

Hummus is undoubtedly a national dish, not only of Israel, Lebanon or Egypt, but of the entire Middle East. The first mentions of it as a dish date back to the times of the Arab Caliphate - the eighth century AD. It is based on chickpea puree or, more commonly known, this legume plant, called mutton or chickpea. It is noteworthy that it was cultivated during the New Stone Age, and its remains were found in one of the most ancient cities on the globe - in Jericho. You don't need to spread hummus on your bread like butter. By doing so, you will deeply hurt the dish itself and its inventors. Put the hummus on a plate and spread it with a rotating motion, getting a small depression in the middle. This cavity can be filled with a variety of additives from classic olive oil to minced lamb meat and beans. The most common and simple ones are a pinch of pine nuts, chopped parsley, coarse salt, and sweet paprika. A more complex combination is the addition of tahini (sesame syrup), grated clove of garlic and a little lemon juice with a leaf of mint or oregano. In any case, you can't even imagine how much a portion of hummus can carry. And you also need to eat hummus correctly: pry it in a circle with a rotary movement with a piece of lightly fried crispy pita bread. This still life of bread and hummus "hat" goes into your mouth. Translated with Google Translate

Paris Square began to be called so in the 50s of the last century, when friendly relations developed between France and Israel. The interests of Israel, France and England converged on the eve of the first Sinai campaign in 1956. The French and British provided the Israeli army with weapons, and the city of Haifa was presented with Carmelite, a funicular underground. Here is its bottom stop. The square is home to the famous Parisian fountain, numerous copies of which were placed in Paris after the city was rebuilt in the second half of the 18th century. These fountains fed the Parisians with water. And in Haifa, the aqueduct appeared together with the British. Before that, water was brought from wells. Translated with Google Translate

Falafel is another iconic element of Israeli street food. It is based on the same chickpeas - mutton peas. Only unlike hummus, this is not mashed potatoes, but a relatively coarse grind with the addition of other legumes and a lot of spices. This mass is deep-fried and, according to the Copts, the first Christians of ancient Egypt, this dish was used as a substitute for meat during Lent. The name "falafel" is Arabic and comes from the word filfel (pilpel in Hebrew) - pepper - due to the tradition of abundantly pepper the spicy bean mass before roasting. The most important thing about falafel is its freshness. The balls should be freshly fried and crunchy with a thin brownish crust. Any "stagnation" of falafel in anticipation of its "eater" leads to a loss of taste and even to the emergence of a bitter aftertaste. Falafel with tahini - sesame syrup - the most delicious combination. However, it becomes even more delicious when you add a little date syrup and onions to the tahini. Falafel is best served with herbs - lettuce, fresh tomatoes, fried eggplant - will always add flavor, and a couple of drops of lemon juice will add softness and tenderness to this truly national dish of the Middle East. Now let's reveal the secrets. So who is the more "national" of the two? Hummus or Falafel? It's simple. When it comes to northern Israel, Lebanon, eastern Turkey and central Iraq - hummus. If we are talking about the space from Shechem to Egypt, Libya and the coast of North Africa up to Tunisia - falafel. But you can never go wrong with pita with hummus and falafel. Translated with Google Translate

During the rule of the Turks, it was here that the Turkish bazaar was located. Remember, before the British, Atzmaut Street (King George the Fifth) did not exist and boats with cargo and goods approached the shallow water. This place is still called the Turkish Bazaar and without a doubt the most "appropriate" dish for this bazaar is Burekas Izmir. Pastries called burekas or burek or burek or che-burek are from the Turkish Ottoman Empire. This is a puff pastry baked in an oven. They are popular in the countries of the Balkan Peninsula, Cyprus, Turkey, Lebanon and Israel. The filling can range from the classic salted cheese (traditional Bulgarian burka) to potatoes, spinach and mushrooms. Classic burekas is a puff pastry, salty ricotta cheese, sweet spicy tomato sauce and pickled vegetables. Translated with Google Translate

The burger definitely came from Hamburg. It was there that the sandwich was "modernized", using a fried cutlet instead of a piece of meat, and a cut bun instead of two pieces of bread. Hamburger is a relatively young dish. The modern concept of a hamburger developed in America at the beginning of the last century, where many immigrants from Germany and Hamburg appeared. This place is open until late and is popular for its beer and hamburgers! Bon Appetit! Translated with Google Translate