I was back in Tel Aviv for work and boy did we eat well. Everything in Tel Aviv today feels very very fresh and new and modern. But I suppose that is mainly due to all the good advice I received in planning our meals. Here’s where we ate, with my brief thoughts on each.

Regina, Hatachana, The Station (Building 10) Neve Tzedek, Tel Aviv. This was a kosher meal in a lovely old converted train station. Really, you can’t beat the atmosphere. The buildings were Arabian in style with small rooms opening up to a spacious courtyard. The food was good, not great, although I did enjoy the babaganoush. The service was sweet, but slow. I’d go back for the atmosphere and if I had a kosher constraint. Beware the mosquitoes though…they did a job on my ankles during dinner.

L’Entrecote, Achad Ha’am 28, on the corner of Nachlat Binyamin. This is a bustling little cafe, quite close to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. We stopped in here for a large group lunch, and while the food reminded me of business class food on an airplane, it was like Singapore Airlines good. I had some sort of stuffed chicken, along with mashed potatoes. The service here is what really made the place stand out. Very friendly and casual, in that American way that I know some people dislike, but I find oddly charming. I’d go back if I had a kosher constraint.

Rustico, Rothschild 15. Totally random. We were going to go to a place in Camel Market, but my colleagues saw “brains on toast” on the menu and refused to go any further. So our friendly Arab-Israeli taxi driver took us to Rustico. Totally packed on whatever night we were there, we were granted a table for an hour. “We’re American,” I said “We eat fast.” (We weren’t all American. I totally lied.) We scooped up satisfying bowls of spinach ravioli, paid our tab, and were gone. I liked it here–nice lighting, nice buzz, nice service, great food. I would go back.

Mizlala, 57 Nachalat Binyamin. One of @zoharwine’s recommendations. I had the ravioli here too. Yes, ravioli two nights in a row, and it was totally worth it. I liked the buzz and the clean lines of the place. Service was a bit off, but they were totally packed and we had the misfortune to be sitting next to a very large party. I’d go back here.

Raphael, The Dan Hotel, 87 Ha’yarkon St. Another @zoharwine recommendation. Raphael is located in one of Tel Aviv’s grande dame hotels, right on the beach. It was a shame that we visited so late at night because we couldn’t see the sea at all. My ceviche was luscious and doused with just the right amount of lime. Raphael is a buzzing place, with a nice looking bar next door. The crowd seemed of the wealthier sort, whereas Mizlala and Rustico stood out for attracting a more mixed crowd. I really liked the food at Raphael, but maybe the atmosphere was a bit too stiff for me. I would save this for a special occasion.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for you. Hope it’s enough. Sorry…the longer I write this blog, the shorter my posts…

The post Eating in Tel Aviv first appeared on Passport Delicious | Solo Travel Blog | Solo Female Travel.

The post Kosher beer and peanuts… first appeared on Passport Delicious | Solo Travel Blog | Solo Female Travel.

I’ve been in and out of three different hotels this month. And it’s really got me thinking about my ideal hotel must-have list.

Because…you start to experience the features of one particular hotel, and you think, “Now really…why didn’t anyone think of this sooner?” For example, at the Crowne Plaza City Centre in Tel Aviv, there was an electric outlet IN THE SAFE. I never realized I needed an electric outlet in my in-room safe until I found myself with a dead laptop and a day’s worth of meetings. No problem. I just locked the laptop in the safe, all plugged in, and when I came back to the hotel, it was all charged up. (Thereby freeing me to work from the bar downstairs, with a glass of Israeli white.) I repeated this in-safe charging experience with my Canon G11. And my Canon 350D. And my iPhone. And my iPad. It was awesome.

Another example: At Tel Aviv’s Crowne Plaza City Centre, the hotel was right across the street from a grocery store. A big one. This was fantastic because I was able to buy a box of granola bars and a bunch of bananas and–voila–no disgustingly expensive hotel breakfast to worry about.

Ah, and did I mention that this hotel had a full Holmes Place gym on the 10th floor? No dinky hotel gym here. This was the real deal. And IT WAS FREE.

The only downside to the Crowne Plaza Tel Aviv? Internet was expensive. EXCEPT if you listened to Bernie at the front desk and learned that there was an unsecured wireless hotspot in the hotel bar, but only if you sat close by the windows. Unfortunately, the signal strength was such that it took 36 hours to download The Life of Brian. But it was fine for e-mail.

In Chile, I stayed three nights at the Sheraton Vina del Mar. As you can see, the hotel rooms are a bit old-school. Clean, but old school. (That being said, the bathroom shower suffered from poor tile work. And mildew.) I liked it here because the hotel gym was free and the spa was open until 10:30 pm. Unfortunately for me, they couldn’t fit me in. I also liked it here because they provided slippers. I am a sucker for hotel slippers.

And of course, I liked it here because after a very long day of work, I could just hang out in my hotel room and check out the view. Pretty fantastic, huh?

The last place I laid my head this month was the Radisson in Santiago. I got an awesome rate of $135 per night, and given that it was the #6 hotel on Trip Advisor, I thought I would give it a whirl. Here’s why I liked it:
1. Seamless free wifi everywhere. Honestly, I was always connected. Some hotels say free wifi, but the moon needs to be full on the 3rd Thursday of the month for the stars to actually align and the wifi connection to be clear. Not so here at the Radisson. Seriously…totally free wifi, totally everywhere. The gym, the breakfast room, the elevator. Someone at the hotel knows what they’re doing.
2. A very good gym with fantastic views out over Santiago and the mountains.
3. Free breakfast. With tortilla. I am a sucker for breakfast tortilla. Ah, and queso fresco.
4. Some of the nicest hotel staff I’ve ever encountered. And you know I stay in a lot of hotels. I checked in around 9:30 am on Thursday and my room wasn’t ready. They told me to head to the breakfast room and help myself. (I have an oil painting of that happening in America, the land of supposedly good service.) I questioned my bill at the end of my stay and they immediately gave me the hotel manager’s card and told me that if I got back to the US and had any questions or problems, I should contact the hotel manager immediately. And most importantly…they remembered my name. This has not happened to me at a hotel since I stayed at the Four Seasons in San Francisco a few years ago. I love it when hotel staff remember my name. (Although it weirds me out when they call me Mrs. N because I start looking around for my mother.)
5. THEY SENT ME A PERSONAL E-MAIL AFTER MY STAY. Thanking me for my feedback. (I filled out their standard hotel survey online.) No form letter here. This was the real deal.

So–I’m in the midst of compiling my list of hotel must-haves. Omnipresent wifi, a good gym, FREE SLIPPERS, free breakfast, a safe that fits a laptop…

What else? What are your hotel must-haves? (Or well, the hotel things that you think are super cool.)

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Wine Bar Yoezer, Jaffa. Down a little alley across from the clock tower in Tel Aviv, you’ll find Wine Bar Yoezer. It’s not cheap by any means, but it’s dark and candlelit and the menu is deeply interesting, in my very humble opinion. During my first visit, I had the PORK and duck rillettes; the dish was so rich, it could have fed me for days on end. I also had the polenta with poached egg and truffles. When I think about the best things I’ve had so far in 2010, this dish will score near the top. On a second visit, my colleagues and I shared a competent selection of charcuterie (with PORK), and I had a small dish of 40 yolk noodles with more TRUFFLES. Another best dish of 2010. WIne Bar Yoezer is by no means a new place, but it’s an interesting place to say the least.

Manta Ray, on the beach close to Jaffa. A guidebook stalwart. So kill me. But I’m so glad we went. We had a table at the window, and there were the waves, crashing right outside. Gorgeous at night, although I’m not a fan of stray cats. You’re offered a selection of mezze from a large platter. I liked the calamari and while the ceviche wasn’t bad, it was a little too salmon-oriented for me. For our main, we split a seafood sharing platter, full of fresh CRABS. Along with CLAMS. And MUSSELS. But really…the best part? The sweet potatoes that has soaked up the delicious and peppery tomato-based sauce that coated everything.

Lilyiot. No idea where it was except that it was close to the Japanese embassy because we parked in their parking spot illegally. The restaurant is similar to Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen in that the staff are primarily made up of at-risk kids. Silverbrow wrote a review a while back, and I pretty much agree with all of his comments. The meal started out with a great selection of mezze. For our mains, I even liked the chicken livers. (Silverbrow didn’t.) But the rest of our meal was boring. The steak was suspect. And it was served with white rice. White rice! This was a kosher restaurant. Nothing was truly bad, but the bright spots were few.

Benny the Fisherman: This was the surprise of the week. Yes, we went to the Port of Tel Aviv, which is apparently very touristy. I had written down a couple of recommendations, but we didn’t make a booking anywhere and just relied on the first two people who got there to find a place. They chose the busiest place and they may have even jumped the queue. You pay a fixed price which escapes me at the moment, and for that price, you get 12 mezze. Yes, 12. The best of which was the spicy tomato Turkish Salad. After your mezze, there’s fish. You name the fish, you can have it. I have no idea what I ordered but it was GREAT. It was a filet of a white fish. Maybe sea bream. Buzzy atmosphere and lots and lots of wine. Great fun.

So there you go…those are my Tel Aviv restaurant recommendations. Yes, they have restaurants in Tel Aviv. (I haven’t even mentioned the many awesome falafel stops, mainly because the signs were all in Hebrew so I have no idea where I was eating.)  I don’t want to go into the politics really because as anyone who knows me will tell you…I hate talking politics…but yes I felt safe and normal at all times so if you need a beach vacation, maybe you should consider Tel Aviv. From what I understand, Israel has just hired the PR firm behind Live Strong and Obama’s online presence, so I expect you’ll be hearing more about Israel in the coming months! I’d go back. For sure.

The post Where to Eat in Tel Aviv first appeared on Passport Delicious | Solo Travel Blog | Solo Female Travel.

If you've been reading my blog long enough, you know I have an affinity for doorways. In the Old City, during our whistle stop "tour"– a 45 minute sprint through the Old City in the heat of the day (with a stop for falafel of course) before heading back to Tel Aviv. 

Told you about the doors, didn't I?

Couldn't resist. Loved the colors.

Happy kids in the Old City. You have to be fast with kids, really. 

The post Around Jerusalem, Israel first appeared on Passport Delicious | Solo Travel Blog | Solo Female Travel.

And yes, I made it into Israel despite the large Syrian visa in my passport. You can read the details of my experience with Israeli immigration over here on Trip Advisor. Sadly, I won't be going to Lebanon now anytime soon unless I get a second passport. 

I only made it to Jaffa around 5 pm because I, uh, slept until 1 pm, surfed the net for a while, went to the gym, surfed the net some more, finally showered, and then finally left my hotel room. But hey, to my credit, I only got to the hotel at around 1 a.m. this morning (Saturday), Tel Aviv time. I got to the airport in Chicago at 5:45 pm Chicago time on Thursday. Door-to-door, that's roughly 25 hours of traveling. But by my math, that's roughly 36 hours of "up time" minus four hours of sleep on the plane.)

Is that Mary? Is she smoking? I'm not sure.

If I were good at taking care of plants, I would want to live here. 

The bike rider came into my picture serendipitously. I wasn't fast enough to up my lens speed, but it was a bit too dark, I think, to have captured him.

An alleyway in Jaffa.  

The post Tel Aviv at Dusk first appeared on Passport Delicious | Solo Travel Blog | Solo Female Travel.