Sudanese goodies in the dark side of Tel Aviv
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A new Sudanese restaurant opened near the Central Bus Station - the area of immigrants and the 'underworld' in Tel Aviv, the place which locals avoid, but which always entertains the eye of an adventurous explorer. On the way there, you might have to kick a syringe or two on the street, and observe a pathetic interaction between a prostitute and a man in a car.
Yet there's about enough light in the area to make you feel safe, and the curious locals are a good alternative when you need to balance out the experiences with the stuck-up majority of young people in Tel Aviv :)
The restaurant is located on Salomon str. 6, near the Levinsky market, the big square where locals hang out, and one of the two pork shops in the neighbourhood. The atmosphere is very relaxed, most people you will see are probably frequent visitors. The place greets you with a huge Israeli flag, and a big TV screen above the bar is tuned to "Al Jazeera". I went there with a professor who is fluent in Arabic, so I didn't get to talk to the people working there, but I bet they speak English and Hebrew as well, at least at a basic level.
The tables and the design might remind you of socialist-style canteens, but let's face it, who doesn't have nostalgia for those? As you cast a glance or two at the TV screen, you may see political debate or a Stephen Seagull movie with Arabic subtitles. For 50 NIS (10 EUR, 13 USD) you can get to taste different dishes: a half-meat, half-yoghurt-based sauce place, which you enjoy with a laffa or pita, pieces of fried beef (?), chicken legs, salad with boiled egg, and some spicy sauce. We were a company of three people, 2.5 eaters, and it was more than enough. You can more or less regulate how spicy you want your food to be, adding more or less of the sauce and choosing the vegetables you like most from the vegetable plate. Those who like fried meat will certainly enjoy the place. The locals, all Africans, were curiously peeking at us, trying to guess what kind of spy the European-looking professor is.
Run there if you like experiencing different kinds of ethnic food and if you like fried meat.
Go there if you want to eat out and save money in Tel Aviv, and if you want to add more culturally diverse spots on your mental map of the city.
Avoid it if you keep kosher or if you think that eating with your hands is barbaric. You can take a fork there, but social eating without the mediation of tableware enhances the taste and the overall enjoyment in the place.