The kosher restaurant scene in Eilat has changed significantly in the past five years.
Many restaurants have not survived the Covid closures and the lack of tourism over the past year has also not helped. However, the lack of flights has increased domestic tourism, providing much-needed support to Eilat’s hotels and restaurants.
I travelled there to discover the city’s most interesting kosher restaurants.
My picks are listed below but the headline is that overall I ate well but there’s a severe lack of interesting kosher meat restaurants. There are plenty of standard grilled meat restaurants, such as HaLev Harahav or Achla Grill, but these can be found in every city in the country.
If you’re driving down there, it’s worth going via the Dead Sea and stopping at Ooh La La Truck in a tranquil setting in Moshav Hazeva, just a few minutes off the main road. The food is dairy-kosher without supervision.
Tulum Beach Eilat
We drove back via Mizpe Ramon, where we had dinner in the lobby bar at Beresheet Hotel with spectacular views over the Ramon Crater. Access to the hotel's restaurants is available only by reservation.
Here are my Eilat favourites — in alphabetical order so I didn’t have to pick a favourite:
An Italian restaurant and bar located at the back of the hotel lobby. It serves traditional Southern Italian food with Middle Eastern influences. Standout dishes include beautifully presented ceviche with labneh, kiwi aioli, and chili oil to start, wild fish on a rich, buttery risotto bed for the main course, a classic tiramisu for dessert, and the Pink Lady cocktail with gin, thyme, and grapefruit.
More info here.
A poolside rooftop restaurant on top of the adult-only Now Hotel, the varied menu includes freshly prepared salads, fish dishes, pasta, pizza, and sushi.
We tried several dishes but the standout starters were ceviche with prunes, chili, and fresh herbs, which was so refreshing and flavourful, and Amberjack sashimi with a tangy ginger dressing. I savoured every bite.
Labneh tortellini with a sage butter sauce was light and fluffy with the richness of the sauce, balanced out by the acidity of the sour yogurt. The sea bass green curry was also delicious and well-seasoned, with just a touch of heat after each bite.
Desserts were good although not as special as the rest of the meal, but we loved the selection of cocktails, and the setting was special.
The restaurant is also open to outside guests for a classic Israeli breakfast with the option to stay and relax by the pool.
More info here.
Ranch House, Royal Beach Hotel
This American steakhouse on the Royal Beach Promenade has been there for as long as I can remember yet remains one of Eilat's most popular kosher restaurants and has outlived all the competition.
Beef is imported from Nebraska, USA, and undergoes an aging process to enhance the flavor and texture. The menu includes traditional cuts of meat served by weight but also offers more unique dishes. Think New Orleans hot chicken (cornflake-crusted chicken thigh in a peanut butter & coconut milk marinade) and barbeque lamb spareribs.
It's hard to believe the desserts are parev. We loved lemon yuzu cream with cornflakes and white chocolate and crack pie with vanilla ice cream.
There’s an impressive wine list, with a good selection available by the glass.
More info here.
One of the only kosher beach restaurants in Israel, Tulum Beach is a beach club and restaurant with a varied menu that includes steaks, grilled fish, sushi, and a full cocktail menu. AT lunchtime on a Friday the restaurant was busy with visitors and locals, but the vibe was lovely and chilled.
We started with freshly baked focaccia bread with black olive tapenade and garlic confit. The purple panko tempura roll from the sushi menu, was nice, but I prefer raw sushi. Entrecote steak with baked potato and chimichurri and the home-made schnitzel were both very good and the crème brulee dessert was a favourite.
Overall, the food was better than at a standard beach restaurant, and we really enjoyed the setting and atmosphere.More info: here.
Debbie Kandel is a food and travel writer and founder of Debbest Israel. The self-proclaimed foodie moved to Israel from London in 2008 and is passionate about helping others plan their own adventures in Jerusalem and around Israel. More info on her tailor-made tasting tours of Shuk Machane Yehuda here.
