Chef Snir Eng‑Sela credits a serendipitous start for his storied culinary career. Following his army service, he answered an ad at the restaurant where his sister worked as a waitress. “Let’s give it a try for a month,” the owner told him. Nearly 30 years later, Eng‑Sela is still in the kitchen.
After years in New York City and later in a Michelin‑awarded restaurant in Spain, Eng‑Sela returned to Israel to join Gouje & Danielle, a destination restaurant outside the city that invites guests to “detach and enjoy” for the evening. “Everybody that comes here doesn't accidentally show up,” he says.
Gouje & Danielle chef and owner Snir Eng-Sela
(Video: Mickey Schmidt)
“You make a reservation, you make a plan, you call up a babysitter if you have younger kids, you're all dressed up and ready for the occasion. You come to a special event, but still, the food is the main actor."
He says the secret to a successful restaurant is hospitality above all: “It’s about making sure that the people that come have a full experience where they enjoy the food, the atmosphere and the hospitality — just make them feel at home.” For Eng‑Sela, Israelis most appreciate feeling welcome and comfortable.
Looking ahead, Eng‑Sela says Gouje & Danielle changes its menu at least twice a year, each time hoping to outdo the last. “I would like to see the restaurant keep being successful for another 15 years,” he says.
As for tasting menus and awards, he shrugs off aspiration for a Michelin star: after a crushing New York Times review early in his career, he learned that true validation comes from the packed dining room, plate by plate. “As a chef and as a restaurateur, you get reviewed every single plate, every single time, every hour of every day.”
Today, after two particularly trying years for Israelis, Eng‑Sela says food and company are “the biggest comforts right now.”