6 Israeli Eateries Nab World Luxury Restaurant Awards

By NoCamels Team August 14, 2019 4 minutes

A table at Hola restaurant and bar. Courtesy.

Six Israeli restaurants were winners at the recent 4th Annual World Luxury Restaurant Awards for 2019, honoring the most prestigious eateries in the luxury dining industry. The winning locations received their awards at a gala ceremony last month in The State Hermitage Museum Official Hotel in St. Petersburg, Russia. More than 200 guests flew in from around the world, representing more than 90 countries and 270 restaurants.

Established in 2015, the World Luxury Restaurant Awards is a global organization that recognizes restaurants “across a diverse variety of categories on a global, continent, regional, and country-level,” the organization’s official website says. Over 100,000 international travelers vote each year during a four-week period to select the winners. Luxury restaurants also have the opportunity to participate in the World Luxury Restaurant Awards by entering categories that showcase their unique selling points and destinations.

Wine and a meat dish from Herbert Samuel Herzliya. Courtesy.

The award-winning Israeli restaurants for this year were Herbert Samuel at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Herzliya, and Aria, Nomi, Milgo Milbar, Hola Restaurant & Bar and Chloélys, all in Tel Aviv.

Herbert Samuel, the signature restaurant at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Herzliya, won in the global category for its luxury kosher cuisine, which places it at the top of the list for best kosher cuisine in Israel.

Led by Chef Mor Cohen, the kosher restaurant offers an eclectic culinary epxerience with contemporary Hebrew cuisine based on Meditteranean elements. The vibrant menu includes local fresh produce like fish, meat, vegetables, and olive oil along wiht a wine menu featuring the best kosher wines produced in Israel and abroad. The menu is offered in a fine dining setting, with a beautiful view of the Herzliya Marina and the Mediterranean Sea.

Herbert Samuel Herzliya is located in The Ritz-Carlton hotel. Photo by Matthew Shaw

Aria, a contemporary chef bistro in the Nachalat Binyamin area of Tel Aviv that offers a diverse seasonal menu by Chef Guy Gamzu, won the World Luxury Restaurant Awards awards in three categories: Best Luxury Restaurant Bar (Global) Fine Dining Cuisine (Middle East), and Interior Design (Middle East.) In addition to its popular high-end upstairs restaurant, Aria also boasts a hip lounge bar downstairs on the ground floor, complete with DJ and a full cocktail bar.

Nomi, the chef-driven kosher restaurant at the David InterContinental Tel Aviv, took the spot for the top luxury hotel restaurant in the Middle East. The restaurant, which serves modern Israeli cuisine by veteran Israeli chef Yoram Nitzan, opened in January 2019.

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In a nod to head chef Moti Titman, Tel Aviv’s Milgo Milbar won the award for best head chef in the Middle East. Milgo Milbar is Titman’s first restaurant. The chef “works to create a modern Israeli food that incorporates his unique interpretation of international cuisines, focusing on the highest quality local ingredients, native to the land and continuously striving to stay one step ahead of new culinary trends,” the restaurant says on its official website. The restaurant was also celebrated for its food presentation and won Best Food Styling/ Presentation in a regional category for North Africa and Israel.

Milgo Milbar is located on the corner of Rothschild Boulevard in the heart of Tel Aviv, across from Habima Theater, the national theater of Israel. The restaurant itself is housed in a former upscale residential house built in the Bauhaus style from the 1930s.

The atmosphere at Milgo Milbar. Courtesy.

Hola, a restaurant and bar with views of the Mediterranean Sea, earned an award in the Best Luxury Brasserie in the Middle East category. The intimate urban space features a large menu by Chef Victor Gloger, divided by cooking methods and ingredients. There are no appetizers or main courses at this space, but there are dishes that can be shared.

The atmosphere at Hola restaurant and bar. Courtesy

Also led by Chef Victor Gloger, Chloelys in Tel Aviv won an award for Best Luxury Kosher Cuisine in the Middle East. The luxury restaurant located in the Hilton Tel Aviv hotel features a menu that combines classic French and Mediterranean dishes.

A dish from Chloelys Tel Aviv at the Hilton hotel. Courtesy

Gåte, a 40-seater fine-dining restaurant situated on Quoin Rock Wines, a short drive from Stellenbosch, South Africa, was highlighted as the Best Global Restaurant of The Year due to an “exciting” new menu that will be launched in August 2019. The menu is said “take you on a fascinating journey with high-end flavours, tastes, and touches inspired from countries across the world.”

Israeli restaurants were not listed for any luxury restaurant awards in 2018 or 2016. In 2017, Pastel restaurant won for Luxury Interior Design/Architecture in the global category and Herbert Samuel in Herzliya won for Luxury Kosher Cuisine (Global) and Luxury Hotel Restaurant (Country.)