OPEN RESTAURANTS FESTIVAL, JERUSALEM 19-23 NOVEMBER, 2019

With over 100 unique culinary experiences combining food with art, culture, and innovation, thousands of people are expected to enjoy the urban culinary festival “OpenRestaurants™” that will return to Jerusalem for the fourth year running from 19-23 November 2019. The many open kitchens, private tours, food talks, art and culture bring together the rich fusion of ethnicity that multicultural Jerusalem offers, showcased at some of the city’s most exciting and celebrated restaurants and landmarks.

The festival will span across Jerusalem offering a distinct series of events in some of the city’s top cultural venues. Together with world-renowned chefs, OpenRestaurants™ Jerusalem redefines traditional culinary experiences and challenge the norms of food and cuisine.

Some of the highlights from this year’s “menu” includes: 

Pasta Siciliana- Antonio “Lello” Favuzzi, Head Chef of London’s Mortimer House Kitchen, is being hosted by Jerusalem’s chef, Moshiko Gamliel, as part of the collaboration with the London Restaurants Festival, and will teach the art of making Sicilian pasta – the authentic way. In the hands-on workshop, Lello will take visitors on a trip to his childhood kitchen in Sicily, where his grandmother taught him how to make pasta using a recipe that was passed down from generation to generation.

The Baker's Visit- The event will be led by Richard Hart – one of the world’s most prestigious bakers, the former head baker of Tartine Bakery, and the current owner of Hart Bakery, the in-house pastry for the Noma restaurant. Joining Hart will be Ogen Anomarel, who is among Israel’s leading and most respected master bakers, a bread and wheat researcher, and a prominent voice in raising awareness of ancient wheat. They both bring a wealth of knowledge gained through years of experience in both education and the hospitality industry and will take participants on a journey that shows off their techniques and the traditions that inspired their baking. The unique gathering will be held at the Shwaras Bakery, which has been operating in the Old City for 400 years.

Ezra Kedem hosts - Chef Ezra Kedem invites participants to visit his very own Garden of Eden — a dreamy orchard in the heart of Ein Karem, which he founded 20 years after opening his legendary Arcadia Restaurant. The tour starts with a visit of Studio Arcadia’s vegetable garden, where he will talk about the roots, colors, and fragrances of his fresh ingredients. Following, there will be a demonstration workshop with Chef Kedem that will show the preparation of a variety of dishes inspired by the flavors of his childhood and his unique spirited surroundings of today. 

Welcoming the Sabbath in Djerba- Chen Koren and photographer Avishag Shaar-Yashuv, back from visiting Djerba, will bring the sensory and culinary experience of far-away here to Jerusalem in a special encounter. Avishag will speak and show her photographs, while Chen will share memories and demonstrate braiding challah Djerba style.  There will then be a traditional pre-Sabbath meal fresh from the island of Djerba.

Baking Night - Pastry Chef David Laor will open his magical French bakery… after hours. Once all the customers have finished their shopping, a baking marathon will begin with three workshops, three varieties of pastries, and lots of soft, puffy delicacies!

EatTech exhibition is bringing designers, chefs, and food scientists together on one culinary-technology evening, where they will present food tech ventures – edible displays that reflect the most innovative trends – ingredients in the foods of tomorrow. Liron Tzanhani – a designer, creator and curator in culinary arts – will host the evening, with an exhibition that creates a new textural experience and highlights ways to use innovative, protein-rich, plant-based ingredients such as seaweed and chickpea protein.

Homeward- A culinary-musical event that evokes the flavors and sounds of home. This is a one-time journey in the footsteps of the flavors and sounds from the childhoods of leading Israeli performers. What are the roots of their music? What is its flavor? The sounds that wafted from the radio in the corner of the kitchen together with the aromas of the dishes, the flavors that mixed with the gorgeous  melodies of the 1970s, the music of food and home – all come together in a series of multisensory performances on the Alliance House stage. 

Tickets can be purchased through the OpenRestaurants™ website: https://openrestaurants.com/?lang=en

Open House Jerusalem - Once in a lifetime opportunity to view Jerusalem’s most fascinating and unseen architectural and artistic treasures October 31 to November 2, 2019

Some of Jerusalem’s most fascinating architectural treasures will open their doors to the public for the Annual Open House Jerusalem festival, which takes place this year from October 31 - November 2, 2019. As part of the international Open House festival, one weekend a year Jerusalem offers a once in a lifetime access to unseen artistic treasures and private spaces, including designer lofts, urban villas, unique synagogues, architecturally significant public buildings, curious construction sites, plazas and gardens. During the event weekend, the public can visit, explore and attend lectures about these sites.

Open House Jerusalem, which began in 2007, was inspired by the London and New York Open Houses and follows their format and values. The project offers unique access to over a hundred interesting homes, public buildings, historical monuments and unique apartments - all distinct in their architectural design, free-of-charge and open to the public at large. Dozens of architectural tours, some with an historical point of view, and others from a technological or social and activist aspect, will allow participants to explore the city in a deep and unique way while celebrating its urban life.

Last year's Open House Jerusalem received over 20,000 visitors, from Israel and abroad, a testament to Jerusalem's brand as a thriving tourism destination with an international reputation for buildings and sites of historical interest. Throughout the festival, the houses, homes, institutions and buildings are opened to the general public and all visits are free of charge. Some are “open houses” and places do not need to be reserved, some are open with guided tours on a first-come basis and some are tours that need to have an on-line registration (from October 25).  There are also tours that are specifically in English for example:

Ratisbonne Monastery

Architect: M. Doumet, 1876-1897

A chance to see the Ratisbonne Monastery, an intriguing building with a Baroque façade that is concealed behind a stone wall and used to be an orphanage and a school. The visits will include the different sections of the French Catholic monastery: the chapel, library, inner hall, tower and courtyard. The monastery was founded by Alphonse Ratisbonne, a French Jew who converted to Christianity. The tours (conducted in English) will be led by monks who study at the monastery.

Immanuel Church and the Protestant Compound

Architect: James Wood Johns, 1849

Guided tours of the oldest Protestant church in the Middle East, which contains Jewish motifs and is concealed within a guesthouse compound. Expert stonecutters from Malta were commissioned to build the church, whose techniques were used by future generations of stonecutters in Jerusalem. The tours will also include the small on-site museum, where original models designed by Conrad Schick are on display, as well as the library. 

The Garden Tomb

Guided tours of a well-tended garden at a holy site sacred to Protestants and Evangelists, who believe it once belonged to Joseph of Arimathea and is where Jesus was buried after his crucifixion (and not in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as Catholics and members of the Orthodox churches hold to be true). Managed and maintained by a British charitable trust named the Garden Tomb Association, the site contains a number of lush alcoves that are used for prayer and to conduct Christian rites within the open garden atmosphere. The garden also features a huge rainwater cistern dating back to the Crusader period, an ancient wine press, and a dual-chamber burial cave. The 30-minute tours will talk about the history of the site and its significance to the pilgrims who come there.

For more information about Open House Jerusalem and to access the full program please visit: http://batim.itraveljerusalem.com/DefaultEng.aspx?batim=