Most talked-about hummus in Jaffa (and Israel)

While hummus, like most foods is a subjective matter, one of the most debated, appreciated, talked-about and recommended places for hummus is Abu-Hasan.

While other dishes tend to be easier to classify, hummus, being basically a mushy paste with toppings is a tad harder to pinpoint. Thus, there are several go-to hummus masters, venues and genres used to ease the definition of what you are eating.

Abu-Hassan is one of them, if not the main one.

This specific location is so popular that the owners opened another branch right across the street and they are both packed at all opening hours (although they start early).

They close the doors as soon as the hummus ends (rather than making new batches) which usually occurs in the early afternoon; you'll be lucky to visit around 15:00 and find any food left.

While hummus enthusiasts might pick other (obscure) places as their all time favorites, this hummus is a touchstone frequently name-dropped in every hummus discussion.

It's also hailed by most as the best hummus ever, the best msabbaha ever, and other titles of grandeur.

I had the pleasure of eating an early morning plate of hummus with fava beans, whole chickpeas and msabbaha (hot hummus mixed with tahini) just several day ago.

The food arrived to our table within a minute, and was delicious to say the least.

It's even better than it looks

The food is great, they always deliver, within moments of your order and the prices are on the lower side of the hummus pricing scale.

There's aren't many options - this is a place you go to for hummus, with an addition of falafel and fries, but that's it. They're good at what they do and there's no need for new ventures.

The place is a must whether you're a tourist or just looking to grab a plate of good hummus.

It might not be your personal best as hummus styles vary, but you owe it yourself to try them at least once, and if you do ask for the triple dish (as seen in the picture) - to get a taste of several styles of hummus. 

Bottom line:

Location: clean, well lit, nicely designed, but quite loud - there's plenty of shouting from the staff, it's a thing

Staff: courteous and helpful, great and fast service

Pricing: relatively low

Food: some say it's the best hummus in the universe

Verdict: worth coming back to, again and again

Hummus Porn

Following some appreciation from r/foodporn I've decided to gather some of my latest hummus photos, the ones I didn't post here yet, knowing that they'll be well enjoyed. 

Here you go:

Ronnie Ful: Hummus with an egg, and a msabbaha

Hummus Sayid: "Meshuleshet", hummus, tahini, msabbaha, fava beans, chickpeas

Hummus Assaf: Soft chickpeas and tahini

Bethlehem Hummusm, Tel-Aviv

Another meshuleshet by Sayid's Tel-Avivian branch

Another one by Assaf

Nadim's Hummus

Danny Ful, Jaffa

Hummus Sayid are back!

After a many doubts and a very long hiatus, Hummus Sayid is now open again!

I promise I'll do a more informative post soon, with a full coverage and some more pictures, but for now here are two photos I took today:

Hummus, cooked chickpeas, olive oil, a hard boiled egg and touch of tahini and parsley

Hummus, ful (fava beans), tahini and msabbaha, with parsley and spicy lemon sauce on top

This monkey's gone to heaven

Imagine there's a mediocre place near your house, it serves mediocre food but the price is right and they even have good days on which the food is great. This imaginary place serves humus, shawarma, skewered meat and other staples of the Arab cuisine.

Now imagine that this made up place is closed for renovation. They splash some paint around, move the furniture, cover the floor with old newspaper. A sign on the see through glass door says it'll be open in no time.

They never come back tough. The place is closed, the work just ceased one day. Nothing moves inside, no one, no sign of live. The place is abandoned.

This happened to me. This place is real to me.

The place was always packed, there was no sign of anything going wrong.

Was this my fault? Did I not deserve a place near my home that serves a variety of food that I like?

This is in loving memory of Sayid's Original Hummus of Akko (the Tel-Aviv branch).

Superb falafel balls with fries and some ketchup

Fresh salad: cucumber, tomato, parsley, all finely chopped and served with lemon juice

A lovely plate of humus, with soft chickpeas in the middle, covered with olive oil and tahini