At its height, the small chain included four restaurants across Belgium and even produced a popular cookbook. Once the association with Tel Aviv became ‘too controversial’, the owners even contemplated changing the interior and the name.
Just a few years ago, Israeli cuisine – a mix of Jewish diaspora food, Middle Eastern influences and local chefs’ interpretations – was having a global moment. Restaurants opened in prime locations across Europe and the U.S., cookbooks sold out, and diners accustomed to cutlery discovered the pleasure of scooping hummus with pita. But the war in Gaza and mounting criticism around the world of Israel’s actions have turned Israeli falafel into something of a bad apple.
