“The ‘Yarkon Pearl’ salad consisted of lettuce and fried mushrooms, but the true pearls were the balls of cheese, coated in pine-nuts, and placed over the salad – healthy, delicious, filling…” As a well-deserved prize for perseverance in her running, Eyna Gal treated herself to a meal at Osishkin Restcafe
“I’m too tired to run today,” I say to Meyrav, as I sit down on the bed in protest. “What is this?!?!” she responds energetically (and typically), standing in front of me in running-tights, sneakers, sweats, and a tightly pulled-back pony tail – ready for battle. “Get up, Gordon beach is waiting.”
Gordon beach was waiting, indeed, and it welcomed us both, dressed in our matching sports clothes. We begin our tri-weekly run, to the Opera Building and back. This time we are sponsored by the meal which will follow this run, and which is the main reason for running today – Meyrav promised me that if I don’t succumb to laziness, she will take me to eat in this great new place, not too far away. As I run, I think that it’s not too bad, it’s almost over, and the prize awaits.
Showered, clean, and in tiptop shape, we enter Osishkin Restcafe a mere hour later. Meyrav tells me (how would she know this?!?!?) that this building was sold after the beginning of the peace process and the Oslo peace accords to the PLO, with the intention of housing the Palestinian embassy within it. This is one of the most beautiful buildings in town, located right at the juncture of HaYarkon and Allenby streets, and today, the embassy plans shelved for the time being, it houses this lovely caf?. The style is European, polished and classy, and the menu is very Israeli. The dishes we had were simple and delicious, as though they were prepared especially for a duo of runners, desperately seeking some pampering after a tough workout.
We start off with a large, rich salad. The ‘Yarkon Pearl’ salad consisted of lettuce and fried mushrooms, but the true pearls were the balls of cheese, coated in pine-nuts, and placed over the salad – healthy, delicious, and filling.
For the entr?es, Meyrav chooses a wonderful Spaghetti Salsa Rosa, and I go for the seasoning-herb quiche. These two dishes suit our moods and our palates. They are not too heavy, they are well prepared, and the use of choice ingredients is evident.
I was very happy that I went for a run, because the reward was worth it. I ask Meyrav for permission to order dessert. “Take your pick,” she generously replies. I choose the strawberry-covered cheese cake. The choice wasn’t easy: the dessert display (all desserts are made fresh here!) showcased such temptations as lemon pie, almond pie, tricolate cake, and balls of apricot marzipan. The cheese cake, however, winked at me in an irresistible fashion, and so the cake took the cake.
We set off for home, on foot, because fitness still reigns supreme. The trick is to know how to accomplish it while having the utmost fun.
Osishkin Restcafe
52 HaYarkon St. on the corner of 7 Allenby St., Tel Aviv.
077-9525580
