Emesh — Restaurant in Tel-Aviv

Most of you know how it goes.. service in Israel is non-existent but this never happened to me until now. After many wonderful visits to this restaurant (over 15 times!), I never thought I’d have to write something like this. Unfortunately, tonight’s experience left a horrible taste.

We came to celebrate a friend’s birthday – the food was great, the atmosphere was lovely, and we truly enjoyed ourselves. However, when the check arrived, the experience went to trash.

The waitress, who had been kind throughout the evening, suddenly rushed us to pay. We told her there was no need to hurry us. Her reaction was shocking: she audibly said “ich” to our faces. We were taken aback, as we had been nothing but respectful the entire evening and had only interacted with her to place our orders.

When I approached the manager to raise the issue, the waitress interrupted the conversation, insisting she had every right to be there. I asked her multiple times to let me speak directly with the manager. the manager did not step in to de-escalate or take control of the situation.

In the end, from a bill of 1,780 NIS and a tip of over 15%, we asked for the tip back as a statement of how we were treated.

It’s truly disappointing, especially from a place I’ve returned to time and time again. Sadly, I think this visit...

Emesh is a tucked-away restaurant on Lillenblum Street in Tel Aviv. It's easy to miss since it's hidden behind a building, with only the reception visible from the outside. We were warmly welcomed and sat in the outdoor area near the bar, which has a nice atmosphere among the skyscrapers. However, the location does result in some strong winds, which can be a bit unpleasant.

The menu features a variety of small dishes, main courses, and an impressive cocktail list. We started with three cocktails, which were beautifully presented and delicious. The dishes we tried were decent but came in small portions and were quite pricey. If you're looking for a place to enjoy drinks and some high-end snacks, this is a great spot. However, for a full dinner, it might not be ideal due to the restaurant's concept.

Throughout our meal, we felt a bit pressured to order more drinks, which was off-putting despite the friendly service. The food was of good quality but not particularly exciting. Overall, Emesh has a lovely setting and great cocktails, but the value for money isn't quite there for us. The hype seems to be more about the location and drinks, so it's not a place we'd...

Dark exterior with no signage - just a lady sat outside and when on asking confirm the restaurant.

5/5 for food 3/5 for brash service and for all our food coming out together.

Interior- a number of different rooms. Main tool with bar was nice with plants, lights.

The room before was odd- cushions on the ceiling, a few Greek bust, a few bamboo walls -perhaps they they ran out of ideas. Service- brash-waitress came up and said- what do you want? Such charm!

Had the cocktails- both Good- On the higher price range as 60NIS.

All the food came together which is the most ridiculous dining concept- why put starters , medium and main etc !

The black aubergine dip did not come with any bread- how ridiculous! What do you do with a dip with no bread? We were offered to get a second dish- focaccia to provide the dip.

The fish tacos was really good- with what was a tahini sauce.

The mains of pulled beef stew was excellent- we used the flat bread in that dish for the aubergine.

The bread pudding was excellent-...