Something a little harder to find in Israel, especially for the alcohol lovers among you, is the social drink after a day’s work/holidaying. You know, that innocent pop round to your “local” to have a quick pint and a bit of a banter before dinner, which is such an integral part of life in many Anglo countries.
In Israel, things are done a little differently. Taking Tel Aviv as the prime example, people often go out very late, even as late as midnight, which on some nights is when the action starts to kick in.
Bear in mind that if you’re intending to down a fair amount of amber nectar and also want to catch some of the amazing nightlife that Tel Aviv has to offer, you should pace yourself. And don’t get confused by the lack of supposedly guaranteed legendary action if it’s still not yet midnight…
In an attempt to bring Tel Aviv into line with its Anglo counterparts, the online City Mouse guide (only in Hebrew I’m afraid) has launched a Happy Hour campaign throughout Tel Aviv, lasting from 6-9pm every night of the week for five weeks (starting last Sunday, August 9th). This is a bold attempt to get Israelis out earlier and drinking earlier, though I’m not convinced they’ll be the ones downing too many cut-price drinks.
And not only do you get cheap drinks and a chance to show the locals how it’s done in this Happy Hour campaign, you also get a chance to win a free ticket to Europe, courtesy of El Al. With each drink that costs between 15-20 shekels, you’ll receive a clue, which, if you’re the first to get it right, will land you that free ticket.
The Tel Aviv bars where you can have yourself a Happy Hour:
- Florentin 10 (10 Florentin Street)
- Lenny’s (7 Vital Street)
- John Doe (4 Malkhei Israel Street)
- Gilda (64 Ehad Ha’am Street)
- Mike’s Place (86 Herbert Samuel Street)
- Mate (226 Dizengoff Street)
- Mate (the new branch of the Dizengoff original – 2 Vital Street)
- Silon (89 King George Street)
- Elwood Bar (57 Ben Yehuda Street)
- Eliezer (186 Ben Yehuda Street)
- Emily Resto Bar (22 Nahalat Binyamin Street)
- Betty Ford (48 Nahalat Binyamin Street)
- Cordovero (21 Cordovero Street)
- Bukowski (39 Frischman Street)
- Strasse (30 Pinsker Street)
- Rothschild’s Kitchen (37 Rothschild Street)
- Hudson Brasserie (27 Habarzel Street)
- Molly Bloom’s (100 Hayarkon Street)
- Leo Bloom’s (24 Raul Wallenberg Street)
- Maraboo (14 Aba Hillel Street, Ramat Gan – on the border of Tel Aviv)