“Luckily, I restrained myself from polishing off the Texas sized onion loaf (essentially a loaf-shaped mass of onion rings) and was therefore able to enjoy the well-made burger…” Idan Driman enjoys a classic American feast and finds the birthday location his mother always dreamed of at Kosher Columbus in Herziliya Pituach.
When it’s up to me to decide what to do for a family birthday, I find the ultimate option to be a restaurant. The choice is obvious because the entire family is utterly gluttonous! It starts to get a little more complicated when considering the end of the birthday meal. The world (or at least my family) is divided into two types: Type A (a.k.a. my mother) would create a family crisis if I don’t manage to arrange ("surprisingly" of course…) a chocolate cake adorned with a sparkler and accompanied by high volume, off-key singing. Type B (a.k.a. my partner) would stare at me viciously if I deigned to embarrass her with a restaurant birthday cake…
Kosher Columbus is definitely the perfect birthday choice for Type A…
Upon entering the restaurant one can see it was designed for family and groups – be it a celebration or just a casual group outing. The restaurant is built on 5 connected and open-concept levels, each filled with large tables or booths ready to accommodate hungry and ready-to-party diners.
Another thing we noticed immediately was the significant level of Americana. This great Americana force came in the shape of the restaurant's American family-friendly pub theme, generous servings of classic American dishes and endless collection of American memorabilia on every inch of wall and filling every corner. We found ourselves staring up, wondering from where each one of these fascinating items came from…until we were distracted by the menu.
As always, and by the recommendation of long-time owner Meir, I chose the house specialties – the gigantic fried onion "loaf" as a starter and a juicy American style burger (called "New Burger") as a main. Luckily, I restrained myself from polishing off the Texas sized onion loaf (essentially a loaf-shaped mass of onion rings) and was therefore able to enjoy the well-made burger. My partner, not surprisingly and without a doubt in her mind, ordered the entrecote in its bloodiest form, and bestowed it with compliments including admitting that its fine taste totally caused her to forget it was kosher. (‘Properly aged meat is properly aged meat’ explained Meir).
Yep, it is important to mention that one of the major changes that took place at this veteran Herziliya restaurant (16 years and going strong) was the owners decision to go kosher about 2 year back. A smart move considering it’s proximity to the abundance of companies in Herziliya Pituach’s industrial park where there is always at least one office member who keeps kosher.
Another extra that must be mentioned are the screens. Not the regular TV ones with soccer games or MTV videos, but "personal" screens attached to each booth allowing diners to play basic video games and trivia. This odd little feature actually provides important added value for parents with kids who also want to enjoy the food, or for somewhat childish competitive adults like us who wouldn’t stop playing until our names made the "Highest Scores" list…
In the end, while enjoying dessert, we witnessed a live performance of the Columbus way to celebrate – the couple in the booth next to us had enormous cowboy hats placed on their heads and were granted a choir of staff members (including the owner!) loudly singing them happy anniversary.
I certainly know where to take my mother for her birthday…
Kosher Columbus
4 Aba Even, Herzliya Pituah
Tel: 09-9589880
