it's all a matter of attention and concentration in small details
With the abundance of restaurants in the north of the country, it is not easy for any place to stick out. They all serve good appetizers, hummus and meat; the level of service is always high. So how does a restaurant differentiate itself from its competitors? If you ask Fuad, chef and owner of Har Miron (Miron Mountain) restaurant in Gush Halav (Jish) village, he would answer that it's all a matter of attention and concentration in small details. And he is talking from experience. After 14 years of work in an Oriental restaurant in Acre, he opened his own place. 17 years have passed, and it is still full on the weekends and holidays, with happy clients that keep on coming back.
Har Miron was named after the beautiful Miron Mountain view, back in its old location at the Jish gas station. When the restaurant relocated into the village, it kept to its name. Its rich Oriental menu offers traditional food next to more modern dishes such as steak in cream and mushroom sauce and seafood. From the large modernly decorated restaurant's windows I still got to see the green rural landscape, which helped build my appetite.
We let Fuad order our food: classic Fattoush salad with fresh chopped vegetables, a mountain of beef cheese, small pieces of spiced fried pita bread and bitter sumac; eggplant salad in rich thick tahini; burnt eggplant salad with an airy light texture; watercress salad with plenty of lemon and olive oil, authentic green Tubule salad and nicely spiced fried cauliflower. Warm Mujaddara with dark lentils warmed our hearts and stomach, and the classic tahini next to thick rich hummus just reminded us how much we love this kind of restaurants.
At this point, we were completely full by the salads, but when Fuad brought to the table a bowl of fresh vegetables surrounded by very thin vine leaves filled with spiced rice we could not resist. When I asked Fuad for the recipe, I was given a detailed explanation that left out the secrets spices, of course. Arabic meat mixture was composed of spring chicken, lamb meat and beef kebab skewers, all of which demonstrated a lot of attention to details. Fuad is the only one in the restaurant authorized to clean the meat and deal with it. The result is a beautifully seasoned meat, with strong tastes, soft texture and perfect French fries served as a side dish.
We leaned back on our chairs and looked out the window. 10 minutes later we were ready for coffee, tea and some dessert. Small glasses spreading cardamom fragrances contained a strong hot delicious coffee drink. Mint tea with small pieces of baklava, and we were set to go.
Har Miron restaurant does the job, and serves Oriental, simple and precise food. Next time around highway 89, you should definitely check it out.
