Abu el Afiya, Tel Aviv-Yafo

First I'll have to tell you a story, which I heard from a friend of mine. A tourist from Germany, who was visiting Israel, told my friend that she was shocked that we, Israelis, eat dinner at 11pm. My reaction to this story was: "She should have gone to Abouelafia at 4 am" ;-)
No, it's not a custom in Israel to eat dinner at 11pm or 4 am, but sometimes we have good reasons to do so.
Abouelafia is the most famous bakery in Tel Aviv, if not in the whole country. It is open 24 hours a day and it is a very busy place. Since Tel Aviv is known as the city that never sleeps, we do party a lot. Once we're done partying, in most of the cases, Abouelafia is a must. I guess for many of us it became tradition. And it tastes sooooooooo good!

This is a well known bakery in Jaffa and one of the most famous in the country.

Favorite Dish: Everything is good - i like Sambusak (a filled pastry wtih cheese and other god things - something like calzone)

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Abouelafia's bakery is a few meters down from the "Clock Square" in old Jaffa. You don't need to ask anyone for directions: Just look around you for a big crowd, young and old, shouting and trying to get the sellers' attention to place their orders.

Whenever I go near Abouelafia my mouth starts to water like a Pavlovian conditioned dog, and in my imagination I start contemplating what kind of pita to get: Pizza-pita? Sesame-pita? Hyssop-pita? Sambusek with salty cheese? Sesame-bagels?

Abouelafia has been in business since 1879, and still going strong.
So, when in Jaffa, don't be intimidated by the crowd and the mild pushing and shoving, and taste a Jaffa legend.

This is a well known bakery in ancient Yafo (Jaffa), which most people would consider to be a "must". I know this place since I was a child, and though it is not as good as it used to be, they do have some good pastries.

They make good sesame "bagels", Pitas, Burekas, Sambusak, and other forms of Arabic / Middle-Eastern / Levantine / Mediterranean pastry.

It's open around the clock, Monday to Friday in the evening. There may be a queue of people when you come there, at all times, but it goes quickly.

Favorite Dish: The pizzas and sesame bagels are the best.