The BEST Hummus in Tel Aviv?

The line after I ate. Triple the size when I first got there.I've worked in travel and media for a long time now so have grown wary of the word "best." If I cover the BEST in a city, then there's nothing left to cover! I admit that I still overuse the word, especially when it comes to food. When I asked around for the best hummus in Tel Aviv, they all pointed me to Abu Hassan in Jaffa, which has been open since 1966. I punched the address into my phone a few times - the one that finally worked was simply "HaDolphin Street." The street is so small so you can't miss it. When I arrived, all I saw were swarms of men in two lines. The line on the left is if you want a seat and the line on the right is for take-away. I didn't get this until I got to the front of the sitting line but they let me order right there. And then I saw another girl! There were 85 loud men, me, and one other chick clambering for hummus. Here is how it went down.

Me: "Shalom. English?"

Hummus Guy: "Ya, ya."

Me: "Um, one original hummus please?"

HG: "No, no, no."

Me: {Goofy American smile and questioning, nervous eyes}

HG: "Hebrew, Hebrew, Hebrew" - shouts to men in the back, plops two spoonfuls of hummus in a bowl, one totally smooth and cold, one warm with chunky chickpea bites. "Try."

Me: "Mmmmmm." {Point to warm/chunky version}

HG: "Ya, ya."{Wraps up my hummus}

I later learned I got the masabaha version. Definitely delicious. Was it the BEST? Depends who you ask. For me, Taim in the West Village serves the best falafel and hummus in the world (and they're Israeli!). Other tips - there are three sizes. A small is more than enough for one person, and comes with two huge, warm pieces of pita bread, and some pepper dipping sauce. Bring shekels!

And then I wandered through old Jaffa, and came upon this view. The crashing waves and blue water never gets old.

I Found My Gourmet Grocery Shop in Tel Aviv

Actually, I found two. Ok, three. I seek these places out like water in the desert. They make me feel at home in a foreign city. I had lunch at Delicatessen, which even had Ina Garten cookbooks on display. Here, they serve a great menu, but also have delicious take-away. I ducked into Neroli Health Food Store on Shabazi Street, which has organic juices. And I bopped around Kitchen Market, which has several stalls set up as well as a restaurant, in the Tel Aviv Port area. 

Kitchen MarketI walked for miles, took copious notes, and ate strawberries that tasted like summer from the Carmel Market. I feel like I have a much better grasp on the city after tackling it on my own.

I rented my own car in Tel Aviv, so I zoomed around today. Parking is terrible, and I got a parking ticket (at least, I assume it is a parking ticket - it is all written in Hebrew so I need to have it translated). Still, it gives me a freedom that I love and more time in the day that is mine.

Tel Aviv PortOutdoor lunch at DelicatessenCute shop on Shabazi StreetTel Aviv Port View

Welcome to Tel Aviv

Flying into Tel Aviv is so beautiful - blue & green everywhere. I'm told the bright colors will soon be gone and the heat and humidity of the summer will take over. But for now, it is lush and gorgeous and I'm loving the sunshine. We ate at Hahultziym 3 in the Florentine neighborhood and I am dreaming of the next time I can eat there for hunks of parmigiano-reggiano, bruschetta, and challah bread stuffed with crumbled pork. I'd go back this week but the chef/owner is closing up and going on vacation to Italy. Aside from my lost baggage, which has since been returned to me, I love Israel already.

View from Old JaffaA tour with National Geographic Emerging Explorer Aziz Abu SarahWonderful dinner at Hahultziym 3

The Dominican Hotel, Brussels

I recently stayed at The Dominican Hotel in Brussels, an urban retreat built on the site of a former monastery near everything in Brussels. Brussels itself is easily walkable - my mom and I only took cabs to and from the train station. The lounge is packed every night, in a cool way, not a "I can't breathe and am too hot" way. I loved the self-service shoe shine machine on every floor to spruce up my well-worn boots after miles of daily walking. And the lobby and breakfast area is gorgeous - high ceilings, rich draping, floor-to-ceiling windows, cozy nooks. If it had been warm enough, I would have been sipping my morning cappuccino and chowing down on eggs in the garden.

Here are more of my favorite discoveries in Brussels - and finding a delicious chocolatier - on my National Geographic column, Urban Insider.

Room at The DominicanLobbyMore lobbyLounge

Bike Ride to Roberta's in Bushwick

There are places in New York that you start to hear rumbles about, then they are splashed all over restaurant pages in the Post, Daily News, Times, and blogs, people like Anthony Bourdain tweet about it, then the wait times exceed 3 hours which of course makes the "cool factor" seem even higher. Oh, and the Clintons hosted a fundraiser here too. For me, there isn't much I'd wait 3 hours for, which is why I had avoided Roberta's up until now. Plus, it was in Bushwick, Brooklyn, a neighborhood I don't really frequent but is one of those changing areas where something cool always seems to be opening.

On Easter Sunday, after a proper Upper East Side church service and breakfast with our wonderful friends, we decided to break out our bikes for the first time in months and bike to Bushwick. The ride, when combined with a visit to Fort Greene, ended up being 14 miles round-trip, and was relatively flat most of the time, except for the Williamsburg Bridge. You really see New York when bike riding, and how the neighborhoods quickly change. We rode through everything from sketchy areas, perfect brownstone streets, and gritty urban sprawl.

And there, after passing factory after factory (no wonder the smell of wontons wafted through the air), there was Roberta's. The pizzas were perfect - thin, crispy crust charred to perfection, and the ideal ratio of cheese to sauce. The vibe - casual, edgy, Good People all around. Plus, we saw a hipster walking his cat when we left (read this for the full story and photo...hilarious). The verdict? Roberta's is worth the journey, and is right near a subway stop if you don't want to bike it! 

Now if only I could score a reservation for Blanca next door...