Ducks - Dizengoff and Gordon

On a sunny friday afternoon, I'm sure to enjoy in Ducks.

LOCATION 10

One of my favourite streets on fridays is Dizengoff. It's alive, more than it is during the weekdays. Another good street is Gordon, in which a lot of galleries are located. In Ducks you get the fast life of Dizengoff, and the romantic green air from Gordon. Ducks is situated at the foot of Dizengoff Suites - a boutique hotel. Perfecto Locationo!


MENU 8
I see a new menu: green, with white ducks and food illustrations. About a week ago, Ducks launched a Gluten-free menu. The menu is very Italian - interesting Pasta dishses are recommanded! There are beautiful salads with tasty toppings. Great desserts served with ice-cream. Their bread is baked on pebbles - sounds interesting! There's a separate menu for breakfasts - in Herbrew and English.


SIT 9
The sitting area inside is pretty loud, for all the action with the coffee and dishes. However, the whole area feels like a painting of a 50's italian cafe. Ceiling is high - making it a large space. A section of the wall is a blackboard, anouncing today's specials maybe? The floor paving is amazing. The tables and chairs are very comfortable.
Outside, the sitting area is almost integral to the sidewalk - this is a sidewalk cafe. There's a red and white striped sunshade, ceiling-ventilators, and wooden boxes with flowers. Wide quadrangle wooden tables, without stupid gaps, chairs are on the right height. The problem is that outside everybody somkes - there's no consideration of non-smokers who want to sit outside.

SERVICE 7
My preference is nice, and not frequent service. I like to decide myself - and not being annoyed repeatedly by waitresses. The serivce in Ducks is the way i like it. You may find it hard to catch your waitress' attention, but at least you won't be annoyed. Some people don't like that kind of service, and sometimes I'm in a horry, too.

VISITORS 8
A lot of tourists are around. Groups of poeple who want to talk. Friends that meet eachother...

THE COFFEE 7
Saquella beans. Strong shot, short foam, little aroma, a bit too balance - not punchy enough! But enjoyable.


OVERALL 8.1
Wow. I love Ducks. It's in a nice place, with good food, and service the way i like, with comfortable sitting, and good looks!

Mitahat la Etz - Ben Yuhuda 200

On my way to work, one corner-cafe always cought my eye: green, small, and cute.

LOCATION 7

On the noisy Ben-Yehuda street, 'Mitahat la Etz' (=under the tree) makes a green quiet street corner. The first 'Mitahat la Etz' is under a tree on Rotschild.

MENU 7
Cheap and gooood sandwiches. We just had to order the recommanded Roastbeef sandwich. Indeed it was very good, and in a good price in Tel Aviv standards - 13 shekels for each tasty half. With the sandwich we got 3 pickles and 2 olives. Salads look amazing, with the sandwich toppings!! The menu is limited, but assures the good stuff is good. The Pastry doesn't look very attractive. We got water in a plastic cup..

SIT 5
mmmmmmm not very comfortable, but nice. You can sit on the bar - but you won't see anything. You can sit on Ben Yehuda street - but you'll get it in your face. We chose to sit in the corner area - on the quiet street. Square wooden tables are small, and unstable - they actually dance! They're small enough to make one person uncomfortable.. The chairs cause discomfort, too. It limits your stay to sereval minutes. It's very hot - only 1 fan cools 6 tables. On the other hand, the tree and the plants make the area green and pleasant. The area in which we sat, is hidden from the traffic.

SERVICE 7
Self service, but with a great smile!! We didn't even sit, and were asked what is out order. Your order is written on a funny little note - that describes what you want in your sandwich. The sandwich was made fast and delicious.

VISITORS 4
Two women screeched sweedish and bothered eveyone. One guy stole our fan. We hate him. Frequently seen are delivery people that take a break with their motorcycle.

THE COFFEE 2
Unfortunately, it tasted like turkish coffee with milk.. It was strong, but not tasty.. The cup was nice - decorated with their logo.

OVERALL 5.3

If you want a majorly good sandwich, and a nice short sit - you better choose Mitahat la Etz. Good prices for good sandwiches.

Goodies - Heh Be Iyar and Akiva Arye

I'm want a coffeeshop with big tables and comfortable chairs, to spend the next hour or two.

LOCATION 5
In the "exclusive" (=expensive) area of Kikar Ha Medina, on the corner of a small street that ends with Alrov towers. I love the square and it's legacy..

MENU 7
The menu is based on Diner foods. Goodies server dishes that other places stopped serving back in the early 80's: malabi, made-overseas soda, and instant coffee with milk. Simple, and nostalgic. And indeed - this cafe is as old as me : 19 years.

SIT 8
Wide quadra tables! woo hoo!! Comfortable chairs with good arm rests!! woo hoo!!
Too much sun though, and little air.. View to the Kikar is a bonus! The whole place feels a little like an israelized American-diner.

SERVICE 6
Instantly after i sat down, a smiling waitress welcomed me and gave me the menu. Wifi signal is great! The staff walks around too much, and they don't look like staff.

VISITORS 7
People who spend their money in Kikar Hamedina, or those who want to look like they do. With their big watches and orange/pink shirts..
Nobody bothers you - because everybody is above your league.. So that turns out to be good!
Just one stupid lady turns her cellphone-loudspeaker on..
And a group of men repeating the word "million" loudly..

THE COFFEE 6
Lavazza coffee - has good smell, but weak taste. Taste is too balanced.. I didn't get much frothed milk - but it was well-foamed. The cup and plate is decorated in gold.. ha ha...

OVERALL 6.5
It was too hot, and the people around made a million noise. But Goodies is a place with old-school foods, and nostalgic ambience.

Shaked - Namal Tel-Aviv

Ma mama said that Shaked is a good place, with good ice cream. so I went to check it out!

LOCATION 5
The Namal went through some major development in the last few years. It became nice and friendly. The problem is that the Namal attracts the bad guys.. Shaked is situated on one of the main-bad-guys' lanes.

MENU 6
No menu - look in the cabinet! Big collection of Ice-Cream. Good ice cream! Some of the flavours are special (like Seaseme and Tahina, and Chocolate-Mint which is not abundant in Israel.)

Nice sandwiches, but they seem moist. Nice salads - ready to go! I'd take a salad from Shaked..

SIT 5
Harbor air, ice-cream loving flies, and airplanes in the sky landing in my old airforce-base. A lot of things happen around - but distant enough that you don't get dizzy. Chairs fit their destination : sit and enjoy the sky. The cafe is all branded with the Shaked logo and graphics.

SERVICE 2

It's self-service, and it seems like the system here works with diminishing hirarchy: one waiter cleans the tables, one makes coffee, and one serves ice-cream. The owner (the one with the angry face) is always walking around, telling the waiter to clean here and there.. Harsh atmosphere.. But the one who serves ice-cream gave me a lot to try, and recommanded. Way too much stress coming from the team...

VISITORS 3

It is mostly populated with families with children - for the Ice Cream. The bad part is people who think they are important mobsters (for they are holding a woman+car keys+cigarettes+lighter+wallet all in one hand. baa.)

THE COFFEE 2
Since i was in Germany, i haven't tasted such horrible coffee. I don't wanna talk about it......

1 point for the Cookie. 1 point for the Cup.

OVERALL 3.8

Show me your customers, and i will tell you who you are...

Take a salad or ice cream, and deal with the sky, the air and the water..

Masarik - Masarik blvd. 12

hmm... where should i go today?..
A place not too far from home, and not too special to waste on a normal day like this.

LOCATION 7
Masarik, as it's name implies, is stuck on Masarik street. The view from the cafe from one side and one side only is beautiful: the whole Masarik square!! And the water fountain! the rest is horrible.
The high grade is just for Masarik square.

MENU 3
Quiches sound good, but are not made here. Sandwiches sound good, too - but are reduced in ingredients.
When they microwave-heat all their frozen bought quiches, they get a new stock - and write it in a special column "Today's Offer". (But we know the truth, right?)
But there's a nice picture in the menu. (the reason for the non-null grade)

SIT 0 (minus 10 if i could)
Horrible. The cafe leans on the side, so the dishes travel on the table. Tables are round, and too high for the sits. All the heat from the asphalt roasts the face. Buses from backside-left to right, cars from right to left, noise, hot air, dirty air, too much light is reflected from everywhere. I am sitting outside on a wooden sofa with a pillow that keeps slipping. Inside there are tall tables that say "Go Away". I had to steal an electircal outlet for my laptop, because they don't give a damn about customers with laptops.
I need a chyropract after this horrible sit.

SERVICE 2
Waited too long. But my questions were answered with a smile. Something about the system here doesn't work: the waitress has 3 large areas to cover, and just 4 limbs.

VISITORS 0
Pregnant women, Yoga-masters who smoke and drink, unemployed lawyers, and people who dress-up like lawyers.. To sum up, people who don't use their hands.

THE COFFEE 3
strong Danesi-juice, short cow-juice weak foam, in a small cup. Way too hot for me, and for Israel.
Nothing with the coffee, but a dirty dish - yuccck.

OVERALL 2.5
I wouldn't sit, nor drink, nor look at Masarik cafe.
yuccck.

Henrietta - Arlozorov 186

In my point of view, cats symbolize the good life in the city, and hedonism.
I wish i were a cat. (next reincarnation, maybe?)
I love cats. =^.^=

caffe henrietta chose a cheeki blue cat as their logo.

LOCATION 7
Where once was cafe Engel, now lays henrietta - on arlozorov street that connects the former-communist Ramat-Gan and the declared capitalist Tel-Aviv. It's a quiet section on a busy street.

MENU 8
Eclectic eclectic eclectic!! Most cafes tend to specialization, when henrietta chose everything. Surprising to see that it doesn't indicate low quality. Few breakfasts to choose from, named like the big chains' (norwegian breakfast for a salmon and cream cheese variation and such..). They serve salads, also named convenientally like the big guys'. Simple sandwiches sound tasty with informative names. An interesting highlight is the little specials menu stand - that they change every few days. There really are specials in it! Spinach Falafel is new to me, and a good selection of vegetables in their Antipasti.. There's another menu for drinks - one side of coffee and cold drinks, and the other side for alcohol. They highlight their happy hour on friday evenings. There's even Jahnun on saturday.. A bonus point for the lovely blue cats on the menu

SIT 7
This time i chose to sit outside, because the music inside is loud. There are a lot of tables with laptops. oh, and people. 2-sit sofa on a ramp attracts the big-brothers who like to see everybody and be seen.
Outside there is a smokers' area on a nice wooden deck - with matching wooden chairs and tables that are missfortunately round.. There's a lot of green on Arlozorov street - and you get it all in Henrietta.
Henrietta is fenced with a green hedge.. The deck is built with a tree in the middle. Henrietta respects the urban nature, and doesn't change the environment.. Air is pressed 300 meters from the cafe in a street tunnel - and cools the place. They play nice soft jazz.. nmmm... just sit......

SERVICE 8
My theory about this time of year, is that owners have to train a new generation of waiters - because the former went to school or the university.
However, my (only) waiter was a pleasent and cool dude. He even asked me if he could clean off the (very) empty dishes from the table!! That's good service in my opinion.. I don't like being followed, and targeted as a 'mission', like massive-franchize waiters are ordered to do. Even when my mug was spotless after milk-scavenging, he still asked! I like seing a living proof of what i did: i ate, therefore i have an empty plate. ande crumbs. I drank, therefore i have a dripping spoon and an empty cup! Long live monuments! When i finished eating (i had to try that Falafel...) i was given a little moistered towellette. With my bill, i got a little survey they give to hear how to improve.
Good service, personal, quiet, aqurate, and cool... somewhat like a cat.

VISITORS 7
A lot of laptops are around - although wifi signal is a little low.. People walk on the sidewalk, look at the fun in Henrietta, and jump in! That's an urban-cafe experience.. Simply quiet people, getting more quiet and relaxed.. somewhat like a cat.

THE COFFEE 9
Mauro.. hmm.... The cappuccino was strong!!! strong i tell you!!!! That makes me happy. Mentally and physically. I want a little more frothed milk, but maybe the barista got mixed up. i'm happy with that coffee.

Overall 7.6
Henrietta is a nice place to sit, relax, and think green thuoghts.. Coffee is good, eclectic variety of interesting food among established dishes. A place for urban - cat - people.. nam nam....

Cafe Diem is slowing down.. BUT BACK SOON

I guess you noticed that Cafe Diem is not updated as promised..

well... It wasn't planned, but for 2.5 weeks - i have a little job i was called to on short notice..

So please don't lose hope - by the 10th of september (next wednesday) - i'm back! full speed!

For now, i'm putting the month-long copyright promise on hold, and writing about occassional cafe-diems.

please wait for me to come back :]

Mazzarine - Gordon 17

Between my girlfriend's home and work, there is only one cafe i want to go to, and that is Mazzarine.

LOCATION 8
Mazzarine is located on Gordon street, the art-galleries street of Tel Aviv. The cafe is hidden, since it's not as outspoken as other cafes and gelateries around. It's really close to the beach!

MENU 6
A big L-shaped aquarioum is in the middle of the cafe' containing all cakes, cookies and legendary macaroons.
The menu is composed of interesting well-known breakfast recipes - variations on eggs and toast. It has a nice goodies-salads section, and 4 eclectic lunch dishes - that sound light and tasty. It is promised that there will be a benefits CityCard.

SIT 5
Wooden round tables inside are cosy-sitting-poopers, and chairs lack arm-rests.
The wall rebounces the noise, causing a headache. However, the wall is colored in a chocolate shade. The beautiful floor tiles - look like white chocolate swirls on chocolate cake frosting... (don't eat from the floor, though...)
Metal frame chairs are for sitting outside, in the shining sun that reflects from the white Bauhaus around.
I sat inside, but i'd sit outside if it wasn't for the horrible heat.

SERVICE 3
One customer caught my attention, when she complained about the long waiting for her coffee. Service is slow: i waited 9:30 minutes to get my coffee, when it was the only order in queue. In addition, the waiters are confused - i found myself reminding the waiter about my order and saw others do it, too. There are always screams between the kitchen and the waiters.
However, the waiters are helping and understanding, and they smile when you arrive and when you leave. In conclusion, I think the serving system needs to be re-organized.

VISITORS 7
Morning customers seem socialized with the waiters: they say hello, and even hug!! I wouldn't say cultural-leaders come here, but people who run away from the north Tel Aviv cafes come to Mazzarine - just plain Tel Avivians in their day, who want coffee and a macaroon.. and another macaroon..

THE COFFEE 8
Saquella supplies the beans. I got a glass-cup of heavy, densly frothed, milk clouds, over not so strong pop-flavour coffee. The espresso did not punch, so i guess i won't wake up from this one..
but...No candy with the coffee?? in Mazzarine?! They should share, they have so much!!!... I actually twisted the plate twice to see if i missed the cookie.. but it wasn't there!!

OVERALL 6.2
Mazzarine is a little far from what's going on, and it doesn't pour to the street like other coffeehouses do - but that's its magic. After a walk on Gordon street, and art galleries tour, you'd wanna sit in Mazzarine for a king-size Macaroon and coffee. (and another macaroon..) Make sure you order early, and scream at your companion loud enough to overcome the noise, and to remind the waitress about your order.