Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
What to Drink in Jerusalem and the Holy Land
Jews and Arabs alike adore coffee but
have different ways of making it. It will
be offered to you at any hour of the day
or night. Teas of many kinds and herbal
infusions are also popular. However, the
hot, very dry climate makes water of the
utmost importance. It is advisable to carry
a bottle of it with you at all times and
drink some before you feel thirsty to avoid dehydration.
Israel now produces a lot of wine of medium to high
quality, but it tends to be expensive. Beer is available in
all the areas covered in this guide, but neither the Israelis
nor the Arabs consume large quantities, preferring to go
to cafés or coffeeshops for socializing.
Tea with fresh
mint leaves
Enjoying outdoor café life on
traffic-free Lunz Street in Jerusalem
WATER AND SOFT DRINKS
BEERS AND SPIRITS
In the entire area described in this
guide, bottled mineral water is readily
available everywhere. Although tap
water throughout Israel is safe to
drink, it is more advisable to drink
bottled water because it tastes
better, especially in the Red Sea
area, where tap water is so heavily
chlorinated that it is unpalatable.
Always make sure that the bottle is
sealed when you buy water.
Bottled fruit juice is also popular,
but remember that even juices that
are sold as “natural” are really long-
life juices produced on an industrial
scale. Fruit juices freshly squeezed in
front of you, especially citrus and pomegranate,
are very good. All non-alcoholic beverages
except for freshly-squeezed juice are almost
always served very cold and with a lot of ice
(which may be made of heavily chlorinated
water), so if you don't want your drinks this
way, remember to say so when ordering.
Many restaurants and cafés have draught
beer, most of which is locally produced. The
main Israeli beers are Maccabee, a slightly
bitter, light lager, and Goldstar, which
is reminiscent of British ale with a dash
of malt. Taybeeh, similar to light, south
German beer, is found in the Palestin-
ian regions, East Jerusalem and some
Israeli bars. Carlsberg is
produced in Israel and
Heineken in Jordan, both
under licence, while most
other major European
brands are imported,
especially into Israel.
Spirits are less widely
available, but are
always sold in hotel
bars throughout the
region. The common-
est is arak, the typical
Mediterranean
distillate of anise.
Bottled
water
Goldstar beer
COFFEE AND TEA
In Jewish areas, coffee and tea are drunk in
European- or American-style cafés. The most
widely available type of coffee is filter coffee,
which is always served for breakfast in hotels.
Many places also offer espresso coffee, but it
is almost always rather weak. For a real
espresso, you must ask for a katzar
(strong coffee). What is called cappuccino
almost always has a huge amount of
whipped cream added to it. Tea
is almost invariably served in
tea-bag form, and caffeine-free
herbal tea (zmachim) is be-
coming increasingly popular.
Tea and coffee in Arab
areas are drunk in coffee-
houses (qahwa) , which serve
nothing else - except sometimes
traditional water pipes (nargileh)
to accompany the drink. Arabic
coffee (also called qahwa ) is
strong and aromatic because of the spices, in
particular the cardamom, added to it. It is served
in tiny cups holding only a few sips. If you do
not specify little or no sugar, it always arrives
heavily sweetened. To avoid a gritty texture,
allow the sediment to settle in the cup first.
Arabic tea (shai)
is more aromatic
and stronger than
Western-style tea and is
also drunk without milk and
with a lot of sugar. In restau-
rants it is often served
after a meal with fresh
mint leaves (naana) .
In Arab coffeehouses,
if you want Western-style
tea, ask for shai-Libton ; in
Arab or Jewish establishments,
for Western-style coffee ask
for nes (short for
s
Nescafé).
Elaborate Arabic coffee set
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