It was day ten on my birthright trip, and my friends and I were sick of falafel and shawarma. I am obsessed with hummus (like eat an entire container in one sitting obsessed), and I told my friends that I would strangle them if they made me eat something with hummus one more time on this trip. So, two of my friends and I ventured out to Benedict. I had seen many pictures of the infamous pancakes on Instagram and figured it was worth the fifteen-minute walk.
We arrived, and we were told it would be a 25 minute wait. We all looked at each other hoping that no one would object to waiting, especially since we had trekked through the Israeli heat, but we all nodded to each other in agreement and decided to wait it out.
Boy, were we happy we did. About fifteen minutes into our wait, the hostess offered us complimentary champagne. This made the wait almost enjoyable, especially since they gave us a second round a few minutes later.
What we ordered (aka what everyone should order)
For those who have never been, the menu is huge and everything on it sounds delicious. We got an order of avocado hummus for the table, and I ordered the blueberry pancakes.
My friend Jilly ordered the egg balls caprese, and my friend Jessi ordered the vegan breakfast (a chickpea pancake with fried onions, corn, tomatoes, herbs, and tomato salsa served with eggplant, red lentils with coriander, and guacamole spreads).
Next, was next level bread
Since the restaurant was packed, it took a little while to get our food, but I can tell you it was worth every minute we waited. They brought us out a bread basket filled with rolls, jam, honey, and Nutella – yes, Nutella to hold us over.
I want to publicly suggest that every American restaurant serve Nutella with bread baskets because, from personal experience, I can promise it keeps hangry girls from complaining about how their food isn’t out yet.
The entrée experience
Finally, our food came out, and we all dug in. My pancakes were so thick and so fluffy that I wanted an entire mattress made out of them (@benedict and @sertamattresses can you collab and hook it up?)
The egg balls caprese were a unique twist on scrambled eggs. They came out as little balls of scrambled eggs with mozzarella, tomatoes, and a balsamic glaze, and after seeing these balls – I don’t think eggs should ever be made in any other form. (My friend who ordered them still texts me most days and tells me how much she’s craving them.)
Last but not least was the vegan breakfast. I was hesitant to support my friend’s decision to order something made of chickpea, as that is exactly what we didn’t want, but after tasting these pancakes, we all agreed it was a great choice on Jessi’s part. It was a very thin pancake filled with different complementary flavors, great for vegans and non-vegans alike.
Reflecting on this food experience
If you can’t tell from this rant, I am completely obsessed with Benedict. When I came home from Israel, my dad asked me what the best part of my trip was, and even after ten days of incredible experiences, I told him it was this brunch. After over a week of non-stop activities and sleep deprivation, this relaxing two-hour meal was worth every calorie, every minute, and every dollar we spent on it. That’s why everyone who goes to Tel Aviv must eat at Benedict.