BACK FROM ISRAEL

I’m back from a whirlwind week in Israel, which was totally amazing. I went on the Zamir Choral Mission; aside from singing at the opening of the Zimriya on Har HaTzofim, we also sang at a couple of retirement homes and entertained a group of 300 immigrants who had arrived from Ethiopia less than two months ago.

But you don’t want to hear about that, you want to hear about the food, right? Well, they didn’t program too much of that into our itinerary, so I got a good tour of fast-food places that you can’t find here.

I still don’t know what the big deal is about McDonald’s (or Burger King, for that matter). To me, these sawdust-burgers go in the category of “it’s kosher, so what?” KFC, on the other hand, was a real treat. If you don’t mind a little grease, this chicken leaves Kosher Delight etc. in the dust. Definitely finger lickin’ good!

I also found out that a “plain pizza” at Domino’s (at least at the Domino’s in Rosh Pina)includes olives and/or mushrooms. A REALLY plain pizza (just sauce and cheese) is a special order. But it was worth the wait.

And for something completely different – try Thai Noodle at the mall in Jerusalem. Warning – the spicy noodles really are! VERY garlicky but good – just have plenty of water nearby. I also tried four different kinds of chicken – breaded, sesame, lemon, and sweet & spicy – and all were delicious.

Of course, for breakfast you can’t beat the hotels – the legendary spreads they put out can carry you through the whole day. Friday night dinner at the Sheraton Plaza was amazing as well – two kinds of fish; something called “eggplant caviar” which we’re still trying to figure out; a choice between roast duck and a “duet” of roast beef and chicken; and the “grand dessert,” chocolate cake, a fruit tart, sorbet… The Plaza’s two restaurants (the third is currently closed) are also highly rated.

The diet starts now…

(DW)