“The meat however was prepared just as we requested, nice and juicy within and displaying perfect grill marks on the outside…” Yonatan Sternberg tucks in for a hearty meal of meat of all the generous fixings at Korus Steak House (Korus Al Ha’esh) in Jerusalem.
Situated in the Center One shopping complex, just down the street from Jerusalem’s central bus station, Korus Steak House (Korus Al Ha’esh, in Hebrew) is a strictly kosher (Mehadrin Jerusalem Rabbinate) grill and meat restaurant. The menu includes a wide variety of cooked dishes, fresh homemade salads, pasta, fish, home made kubeh (bulgur stuffed with meat) soup, grilled meats and even a special children’s menu.
If the name Korus rings a bell, that’s because this restaurant is part of the Korus chain which also includes several Chinese restaurants (Korusin) and even a dairy café (Café Korus), all strictly kosher as well. In addition, the chain also hosts luncheons and evening events and offers catering services.
Every meal at Korus Al Ha’esh begins with an impressive array of colorful and fresh salads laid out on the table. We particularly enjoyed the piquant carrot salad and the tabuleh. The restaurant is known for its generous portions. Business lunches are served from noon until 5 p.m. and include a choice of a main course, two side dishes (roasted sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, rice, couscous, fries and more) and the famous salads.
When speaking to the manager, he mentioned that the key word at Korus is ‘shefa’ which is Hebrew for abundance or plentiful. “We want to make sure that our customers don’t feel like we are cutting back on them. All of our portions are very generous and everything is prepared fresh on site. The chain has been around for over 14 years now and we want to make sure that every one who walks out of the restaurant is both satisfied and, of course, full.”
While the business menu was tempting, following recommendations from our friendly waiter we decided to choose dishes off the specials menu. We sampled an assortment of grilled meats including the entrecote (rib eye) steak in a Bordeaux sauce, the spring chicken steak in an Asian style marinade and the grilled chicken livers. The sauces served along side the dishes were a bit disappointing, the meat however was prepared just as we requested, nice and juicy within and displaying perfect grill marks on the outside. I often find that ordering chicken livers in a kosher restaurant is risky, but my gamble paid off and the chicken livers at Korusm, served with crispy fried onions, were delicious.
Again, the servings were very generous and we were having trouble finishing the food on our plates. It seemed to me that every other table was walking out of the restaurant with a doggy bag in their hands, unfortunately I wasn’t heading home or else I probably would have done the same.
Korus Steak House (Korus Al Ha’esh)
43 Yirmihu, Center One, Jerusalem
Tel: 02-5386061
