We spent over an hour walking around the Machane Yehuda market in Jerusalem, and saw plenty of great opportunities to sit down for a nice lunch, we just couldn't agree on where. So, we just kept walking, hoping to find a place that everyone in our group of four would like. That's when we stumbled upon Ishtabach, a nice low-key eatery one street over from the market. An amazing smell emanating from inside drew us in.
Oren Sasson-Levi, the chef and founder of Ishtabach recalls eating the shamburach made by his Kurdish grandmother when he was a child. Interestingly, Oren fell into a coma a few years ago, and came up with the idea for Ishtabach during a long recovery period.
The name means: "The man is a cook", also reminiscent of the word "yishtabach" - from the Kaddish prayer, meaning "May He be praised".
The decor is very rustic, warm and inviting, it feels like a perfect hang out place for young people.
The menu is very simple, they only serve shamburak. What is a shamburak? Well, it is a Kurdish - Syrian pastry with a savory filling, a hot pocket of sorts.
We began our lunch with the fried potato wedges served with tomato salsa and garlic-lemon aioli.
Next came the shuk salad with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, pepper, carrot, lettuce, red onion, roasted walnuts and cherry vinaigrette dressing. All the veggies are fresh from the market next door.
We then enjoyed some tasty mezze, which included spicy carrots, taboulech, tehina, roasted red pepper, beets etc.
Shamburak starts as a flat disc of dough topped with a layer of mashed potatoes which serves as a barrier between the juicy meat and the dough. The mashed potatoes are followed by the meat, or vegetable filling, grilled onions, and chimichurri sauce. The edges of the dough are folded over and pinched, thus enclosing the meat in, but keeping the center open. The delicacy is then put into a large stone oven.
Vegetarian shamburak - roasted sweet potatoes, black lentils, mushrooms, and green onions.
Brisket shamburak - brisket cooked in stout beer. The beef is slow cooked for 15 hours, which helps the meat become tender and delicious. This was one of the more memorable things I have eaten on this vacation, a little spicy but not overly so, and very filling.
At the end of our meal we were given these spoons with what I think was halva, it was delicious.
Ishtabach - Kosher
1 Ha-Shikma
Sunday - Thursday - 12pm - 1am
Saturday - 8pm - 1 am
Joanna
نقدم لكم افضل مزايا التسوق من خلال سوق كوم الذى يوفر لكم كل جديد من خلال توفير العروض و الخصومات التى يوفرها و الشحن المجانى المقدم من سوق كوم
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