Putting meat first
Lehem Basar is a chain of steak restaurants that is expanding rapidly. Their newest branch, in Bnei Brak, offers excellent kosher dishes and sleek, modern surroundings.
The literal translation of Lehem Basar is Bread (and) Meat; the sign in English on the restaurant, meanwhile, reads Meat and Eat. Either way, this chain of kosher restaurants is apparently doing something right: it is in the midst of a growth spurt and just celebrated the opening of a new branch, in the business district on the border of Bnei Brak and Ramat Gan.
This latest branch is owned by the same franchisee who owns and manages the successful Lehem Basar eatery in Namal Tel Aviv, and his expertise gained from experience shows in the training that was obviously imparted to the staff, which renders excellent service. The culinary side of things, meanwhile, is under the capable supervision of Yadin Eden, formerly the founding chef of Meat and Wine in Herzliya and currently executive chef of the Lehem Basar chain, which is affiliated with the Café Café Group.
As we perused the leather-bound bilingual menu, we ordered two of the five specialty house cocktails: the eponymous Lehem Basar (vodka, Martini Bianco, Cointreau, lime juice and lychee liqueur) and the Royal Italiano (Van Gogh pomegranate liqueur with red grapefruit juice). Fans of sweet drinks will enjoy the former; the taste of grapefruit is dominant in the refreshing latter.
Bread, which features so prominently in the restaurants’ name, has, in fact, been phased out of the menu in favor of focaccias -- all baked fresh in the impressive taboon on the premises. The lightly seasoned house focaccia comes with three tempting dips: a mild tomato salsa in olive oil, rich creamy tehina, and an eggplant mousse.
There is a daily soup de jour, and we were fortunate to be able to try the pumpkin soup, enhanced with other orange vegetables; the velvety, savory broth was excellent.
For an appetizer, we ordered another product of the taboon: the beef ragout focaccia, which actually resembles a pizza. A pungent blanket of chopped beef - garnished with red bell pepper and drizzled with the house tehina - is baked onto a thin, sesame seed crust. On a previous occasion, I had tasted the lamb lahmajoun - ground lamb baked into a vented, crescent-shaped turnover. Either choice is rewarding.
Chef Eden insisted that we try one of the chain’s most popular appetizers: the quinoa salad -- a mound of the red grain tossed with beet, red onion, herbs, hazelnut pieces, and dried cranberries and dressed with a tangy blend of pomegranate concentrate, balsamic vinegar and olive oil. The interplay of flavors and textures -- especially the crunch of the nuts, the sweetness of the cranberries and the acidity of the dressing - keeps the taste buds stimulated long after the last forkful.
For main courses, the menu lists several cuts of steak, along with choices of size by weight. My companion selected the entrecôte, which arrived grilled exactly as ordered - medium - and was pronounced superb. Aficionados of chimichurri will find the version here exceptionally good.
I also opted for entrecôte - in the form of Lehem Basar’s hamburger. One taste confirmed that the moist and flavorful burger was indeed ground from prime cuts of beef.
The only disappointments of the day were the sides that came with our meat courses. Both the roasted potato wedges and the french fries were generous portions, served on their own small plates; but the former were a bit oily and underseasoned, while the latter were mealy, and quite obviously previously frozen. Since the quality of the sides seemed quite inconsistent with the overall level of the restaurant, I mentioned this to the owner, who explained that he was aware of the problem, but that he is temporarily forced to use inferior and frozen produce until a new crop comes in after the shmita year. This anomalous situation is expected to improve very soon.
Things picked right back up again when desserts came. At this sleek and modern Lehem Basar, they are a feast for the eyes as well as the palate. There are a number of chocolate options on the separate dessert menu, including the profiteroles -- another customer favorite, according to management. The extra large puff pastries are filled with rich chocolate cream as thick as fudge, and paired with a scoop of vanilla pareve ice cream (which unfortunately suffers a bit from not being able to be made with real dairy cream).
The faux whipped cream in the dessert called kadaif nest, on the other hand, tastes remarkably very close to the real thing. The mound of snow-white fluff nestled in the shredded wheat shell rises from atop a layer of halvah and morsels of pistachio nut, to crown the lightest and sweetest of confections.
In addition to the good food and impeccable service, this Lehem Basar also offers value, in the form of its extended “business lunch” that runs from noon until 17.00, and starts at only NIS 69.
