Ruben | The power of corned beef

I won't go on and on about Ruben, not since they don't deserve - because they really do; except I wrote about them before, so I'll just paste links to previous posts.

The picture below is from last week; I was drinking out with friends and when we got the munchies we realized Ruben was around the corner.

corned beef on white bread, with mustard, herb aioli, horseradish sauce, lettuce and tomato

The sandwich was amazing as always, so was the service.

Look at that pinkish, juicy meat.

LOOK AT IT.

Read more:

The Search for Tel-Aviv's Perfect Sandwich: Ruben

Corned Beef Sandwich @ Ruben

Beef & Turkey Pastrami Sandwich

Read this post in Hebrew

Fleishmann's Deli

This is not the first time I mention Fleishmann's Deli although I did spell the name differently last time.

They've already opened a Foursquare account so I know how they want to be called, although I tweaked it a bit since it wasn't following some grammar basics (which is kinda arrogant of me).

Anyhow, let's keep it simple, this is a short one: Fresh Moroccan bread, chipotle sauce, BBQ sauce, yellow mustard, horseradish sauce, lettuce and lots of corned beef.

I was pleasantry surprised to discover chips and delightful pickled cabbage in my take-away bag [and a tiny chipotle sauce container].

It was a superb sandwich, as good as I remembered.

The only bad thing I can think of is that they don't have enough opening hours so it's kinda hard to get my fix.

Otherwise - epic.

Note to self: on my next visit I should check out their pulled beef sandwich, it looked pretty good.

The Search for Tel-Aviv's Perfect Sandwich: Fleishman's Deli

Me and a few people from work went out for lunch today - to a quiche place I adore.

Yeah, I know, quiche, right? But that place is amazing. Was amazing actually, we discovered that it moved.

Instead of the familiar venue I found Fleishman's Deli, same location, different dimension. 

They were wise enough to place fresh, gorgeous sandwiches in the window display, I fell right into that trap.

BBQ sauce, chipotle sauce, mustard, tomato, lettuce and sliced pickles

I ordered a corned beef sandwich. 

They use fresh frena bread; frena is a Moroccan style bread, named after the frena oven in which it was traditionally made. The traditional way also includes river stones (for thermal reasons).

When compiling the sandwich I asked for: BBQ sauce, chipotle sauce, mustard, tomato, lettuce and sliced pickles.

The sandwich is served with a side of potato chips and sweet pickled cabbage.

There were sauce bottles and various dipping sauces on and behind the counter, it was like a party in my mouth.

the best corned beef sandwich I had in quite a while

I'm gonna stop here cos I'm pretty tired of writing this post, wasn't going to post anything new today but the sandwich was so amazing I just had to share.

Just let me add that they have four special gimmicks that are worth mentioning:

1. There are self serve taps with various types of soda (no brands but they were all good), you just pay for a cup and drink whatever you want. This concept is rarely used in our parts of the world due to both sides (i.e. business owners and customers) being assholes. People will drink your "free" soda all day and fill up bottle they brought from home - and on the flip-side, if you can charge for extra drinks it's considered a loss.
2. There are vases with fresh green onions all over the place, just pick 'em and eat away.
3. They use a machine that keeps the potato chips warm and fresh. The kind of machine you find in cinemas and nacho stands, but the fact that they bothered and that the chips were actually fresh is pretty new in our culinary scene. It's usually stale-ish servings or just factory sealed bags in our areas.
4. They have really cheap booze! 9nis for a shot of Stoli or Jameson is pretty decent. 

That's all, enjoy the rest of the pictures.

Also, I gotta state again that the sandwich was EPIC.

a display of steamed corned-beef sandwich awesomeness

a bowl of sweet pickled cabbage, a side of potato chips, lemon soda

warm corned beef pleasures

a tap of goldstar beer, green onions, bread and a potato chip heater

The Search for Tel-Aviv's Perfect Sandwich: Ruben

Ruben is a place that you can easily get addicted to its produce. They have several branches yet they're able to keep the original ma & pa look and feel, kind service and most importantly - incredible sandwiches.
Ruben, which sounds like Reuben and kinda looks like it too - is not your classic Reuben.

The pictures below were taken in the Carlebach \Yehuda Halevi branch, it's the closest one to where I live and I ate quite a few sandwiches there. You can smell the cured meats outside the store, and when you walk in the serving counter is right in front of you, there are bar stools to sit on and look out the huge windows. There's a second floor, with more stools and windows, and even a balcony.

Juicy, moist, thinly sliced corned beef, sauces, gherkins, a frosty Dr. Pepper

The menu is quite simple. Three sandwich sizes, two types of sliced bread, there's beef, there's turkey, sauces and vegetables, just name your ingredients and it's made in front of you while you drool. You might even get a few slices of meat to snack while you wait. Each sandwich gets a side of two delicious, crispy gherkins.

The fridge is packed with all the usual drinks, plus Dr. Pepper and several types of Dr. Brown's. There are also  two taps of beer (and pitchers if you're that thirsty).

Now for the sauces: there's a superb horseradish sauce, mustard, mustard cut with date syrup, herb aioli, and a hot sauce. The vegetables are pretty basic: tomatoes, lettuce, onions and pickled cabbage with onions.

A perfect corned beef sandwich

The sandwiches are of the kind that makes you come back again and again. Tender, smoked, moist meats, fresh and delicious everything, it's a foodies wet dream. The prices are reasonable and there's always good music playing in the background.

The only bad thing I can think of would be the opening hours, this place should operate 24/7.

If you're a fan of sandwiches - Ruben is a place that you must visit.

The Search for Tel-Aviv's Perfect Sandwich: Delicious Deli

I was told that Delicious Deli Bar have an amazing hot pastrami sandwich, which made me think a visit is due. I was also told their burgers were superb, but burgers aren't my cup of tea so I really didn't care.
It was but a matter of time.

It was a Saturday night. The Delicious Deli Bar, located at the Tel Aviv Port Market was one of the few stands still operating, most people were busy eating ice cream on the boardwalk, in the almost cool air of the sea.

400gram NY hot pastrami sandwich

Sriracha bottles on the counter and a soda fountain with various colorful syrups were a nice touch. This went great with the smoke (baked and with cajun seasoning, not sure about actual smoke) potato wedges I ordered along with the sandwich. There was also a mustard based sauce involved, it was epic.

I ordered the NY hot pastrami sandwich, which is just like their plain hot pastrami sandwich, but with 400 grams (0.88 pounds) of meat in it. My sandwich was mistakenly served to a lady sitting at the counter next to me, but the issue was soon rectified and I was able to strike.

This is a waste of a hot pastrami sandwich

I wish this was the tale of the perfect sandwich, of a lost treasure, the discovery that will change my life, something I could share with joy and recommend to all my beloved carnivores, but it's not, it wasn't.
The meat was dry and chewy, with a taste you'd not even expect from supermarket leftovers.
It just wasn't good. There was even a large  blood vessel chunk visible in the heap of meat prior to my first bite which was kinda gross.
I ate some of it, but most of it went to a nearby dog that appreciated it. I just ate the potatoes, the bread which was pretty good and drank my lemon soda, allowing the disappointment fill in the room I saved for food. 

The menu offered the above mentioned hamburger and another type of sandwich, but I didn't want to play this game anymore. I've had my share, learned my lesson, walked away.
Perhaps this was just a bad day at Delicious Deli Bar, it might have been anything actually, but for me it was a horrible first impression that made me feel as if all of the raving recommendations were nothing but PR and unjust hype.

Food porn: pizza and meats

I gladly present four dishes I'd love to eat each and every day + one I don't ever want to see again.

Enjoy!

A new place called Kababa - a word play on kabab (kebab an Arab word for skewed meat) and baba (father) is now serving chicken shawarma alongside veal doner and a variety of skewers. All of the above might sound very old-school and hardcore but the place is operated like a McDonald's, with trays, brand paper cups and lots of employees to take your order and put it into a touch screen computer. Also: the meat is cut by a robot!

8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8

Thin crust pizza with pineapple, corn and eggplants. It was awesome when it was hot but half an hour later it became tasteless. Seriously, it went from being a great pizza into cardboard just like that.

8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8

This never came near my mouth but I just had to take a photo. I'm not a fan of meatballs or minced stuff in general. It sure smelled good but still - I feel bad just looking at it.

8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8

A slice from a nearby Sbarro with a side of grape drink. This is a personal favorite that goes back to childhood. This specific branch was closed several weeks after I took the photo :(

8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8 * 8

These gherkins alone are amazing but that whole meal is just mind-blowing. Turkey pastrami, corned beef, mustard cut with date syrup, it was like a miracle in my mouth. All that and an ice cold can of Dr Pepper.

Food porn: pizza and stuff

Back with another batch!

I'm kinda hungry cos I've yet eaten today and it's past lunch time. These pictures are killing me so I'll get this over with and run out to grab something.

Enjoy!

Grilled cheese bagel with pesto sauce, tomatoes, corn and fried eggplants. It was better than one might imagine.

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Just a plate of hummus from a place called Assaf (the name of the owner). They're really great and are easily  on the top of my favorite hummus places. There are two types of hot sauce on the table, complimentary falafel balls and relay sweet pickled cabbage that's served the moment you sit down. Their pitas are puffy and really soft.

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An amazing pastrami sandwich by Ruben. It resembles a reuben sandwich but lacks the cheese. The meat is actually somewhere between pastrami and corned-beef and it's kept in a warm humidor. It's packed with overwhelming flavor. I ordered mine with mustard, horseradish sauce, lettuce and tomatoes. They also have a pretty good turkey pastrami.

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This was actually one of the first places around to have Sriracha sauce. The pizza is so good you don't even need the sauce but still... The service is horrible but the quality of the pizza justifies a visit. This pizza is so good that it tastes amazing even after a night in the fridge - no heating.

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A new pizza place I tried offered free toppings so it was hard to refuse. The pizza itself was pretty much okay but the cherry tomatoes and the mushrooms were pretty great. I will order the hell out of this pizza.

Food porn: drooling all over

I gladly present the first of a series of posts based on stuff I ate.

These shorts should be descriptive enough not to be boring and short enough to keep you reading.

Hope you enjoy.

Tal Bagles is a great place to start with. This is a poppy seed bagel with corned beef, mustard, lettuce, fresh cucumbers, tomatoes and deep fried eggplants mixed with parsley. The meat was tender and you can see it's pinkish and wonderful. The mustard added a wonderful spicy kick to all the meat and vegetables.

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This pizza is from an awesome tiny place called "Pizza USA". It's a father and son place, they are quite cheap and extremely tasty. Each slice is packed with simple yet amazing flavors. This place is kinda far from where I live but is well worth the drive since they deliver an old-school style pizza that takes me back to my childhood.

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A simple home made breakfast of cherry tomatoes and avocado on a Jerusalem style bagel (long, narrow, coated with sesame and almost crispy).

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Grilled pastrami toast with mustard and pesto. The place that makes them (Suduch) gives you a glass of lemonade and a side of spicy pickles with every order.

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Tikka chicken made on a skewer in a tandoor oven. The chicken was soft, amazing, so rich and juicy. I was told that it was marinated with herbs over night which would explain the tenderness and moistness to it.

The onions were a bit much tho - I hate onions to the point of nausea and these were incredibly smelly.