Restaurants in Tel Aviv

There are over 500 restaurants in Tel Aviv, serving food from all over the world, so visitors are spoilt for choice. Most restaurants don’t bother with kashrut (Jewish dietary laws), making this a foodie city on a global level.

Several outstanding places offer gastronomic dining but there are many good mid-priced restaurants too and scores of budget eateries, including a wonderful legion of falafel cafes.

The Tel Aviv restaurants below have been hand-picked by our guide author and are grouped into three pricing categories:
Expensive (over NIS200)
Moderate (NIS100-200)
Cheap (up to NIS100)

These Tel Aviv restaurant prices are for a three-course meal for one, including half a bottle of house wine or equivalent, tax and service. A service charge of 12.5% or more will be added to your bill in most restaurants. If service is not included, a minimum 10% tipping is customary. 

Messa

Price: Expensive
Cuisine: Israeli

Run by one of the city’s most famous chefs, Aviv Moshe, Messa is a fine-dining restaurant that specialises in an upmarket version of local food with most ingredients sourced from the surrounding area. The black and white décor is slightly intimidating but it’s well worth it for the excellent food.

Address: 19 HaArba'a Street, Sarona, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 53 941 8828

Manta Ray

Price: Expensive
Cuisine: Mediterranean

 Although large and crowd-pleasing, there’s something about this restaurant that makes dining an intimate experience. Seats overlook the sparkling Mediterranean, and the food is creative as well as well crafted. Although the emphasis is seafood, many recommend breakfasting here.

Address: 7 Koifman Street, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 517 4773
Website:

La Shuk

Price: Expensive
Cuisine: Israeli

This chic and cosy restaurant offers diners an original take on modern Israeli cuisine from the heart of Tel Aviv. Amid colourful cocktails and light fixtures, enjoy such fine and flavourful foods as black ink seafood linguini, fresh artichoke salad, and tender beef kebab.

Address: Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 603 3117

Orna and Ella

Price: Moderate
Cuisine: International

A light and airy restaurant decked out in light pinewood and Scandinavian-style fittings, Orna and Ella is the place to go if you’re after healthy food or a light lunch. That said, the sweet potato pancakes are divine, and just about everything else tastes great and comes in large portions.

Address: 33 Sheinkin Street, Sarona, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 525 2085.

Cafe Noir

Price: Moderate
Cuisine: French, European

With dark wood furnishings and exposed brick walls, Café Noir offers an authentic splash of France in bustling brasserie surroundings. A block from Rothschild Boulevard, it’s open from early morning till the early hours of the next day, and offers a genuine French menu that includes everything from croissants to entrecôte bordelaise (steak).

Address: 43 Ahad Ha'am Street, Harakevet, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 566 3018.

Max Brenner Chocolate Bar

Price: Moderate
Cuisine: International

Chocolate goes with everything at this Tel Aviv institution, which has two further branches around the city. Among the offerings: chocolate pizza. The savoury dishes are good too, and it is possible to enjoy lunch or dinner here without touching the sweet stuff - but what would be the point?

Address: 45 Rothschild Boulevard, Nave Sha’anan, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 560 4570.

Dr Shakshuka

Price: Cheap
Cuisine: Israeli

Don’t be fooled by the slightly grotty exterior – this is one of the best places to eat in Tel Aviv. As the name suggests, the speciality is shakshuka, a pan filled with simmered tomatoes and a fried egg, but the shawarma (kebabs) and mezze are delicious too. Wash it all down with a lemon-mint juice.

Address: 3 Beit Eshel Street, Old Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 518 6560

Café London

Price: Cheap
Cuisine: International

Big, crowded, easy-going, and right beside the beach, this huge open-air eatery offers a very wide selection of dishes all day and all evening. Almost any and every kind of food is available, from brunch to late-night supper and between meals too. The quality varies but the location is unbeatable.

Address: 111 Herbert Samuel Promenade, Mahane Rabin, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 523 5055.

Pasta Basta

Price: Cheap
Cuisine: Italian

 If you find yourself tiring of falafel and hummus but still want carbs, Pasta Basta is the place to go for a quick and delicious meal. Their specialty is pasta but they have plenty of vegan and vegetarian options in addition to a delicious and fresh chopped salad.

Address: 60 Allenby Street, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 510 5554

Abraham Hostel

Price: Cheap

 If you’re in the market for a hostel there’s virtually no nicer place to stay than at the Abraham Hostel, which offers large dorm rooms, free Wi-Fi, a big breakfast, airport transportation, and a rooftop bar. The lounge area is notoriously chic and hipster, with hammocks hanging from the ceiling and bright, bold murals spread across the walls.

Address: 21 Levontin Street, Tel Aviv, Israel
Telephone: +972 3 624 9200
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