Cheap Eats in Jerusalem

I’ve made pretty clear that food happens to be a major part of Jewish culture. The other thing the Jewish people have been infamous for throughout history, is their relationship with money, i.e. being cheap. Unfortunately, there is no nice way to say it but it has been the stereotype for many, many years. Exhibit A. Shakespeare portraying Shylock from the Merchant of Venice as a rich, money hungry Jew.

So we happen to have a bad reputation for stinginess? (Stingy is one of those onomatopoeic words that sounds horrible in its own right). What better way to combat this than the list below:

Top 14 ways to get free food in Jerusalem

1)      Where else but the Chalva stand in the Shuk, Machane Yehuda? I acknowledge the fact that the Shuk has played quite a prominent role in this blog, but not without good reason. Walk past either of the 2 chalva stands (Mamlechet Hachalva) in the shuk on any given day, and the vendors practically shove chalva down your throat. Look out for the Chalva King himself - Eli, who continuously yells out "בא לטאום!" - come and taste!

2)      Speaking of the shuk, across from the Chalva stand is a shop specializing in olive oil. There are always bowls of sliced bread to dip into the oil. So if you feel like making a chalva sanga, grab a piece of chalva, bread with a dab of oil and you have lunch for the day.

3)      In general the shuk is one big taste test – ask any vendor "אפשר לטעום" - can I taste? and they will never turn you away. Often, they will give you a freebie (or a "מתנה" (, if you are only purchasing one item (e.g. a cucumber). Seriously, try it. It works.

4)      Moving away from the shuk, take a walk on the wild side, Ben Yehuda – a mere 10 minutes away. The well known falafel/shwarma store - Moshiko, throws falafel balls at any passerby. When I say throw, I literally mean: throw. Be careful, noone wants falafel splattered all over their face. They do however, have a reputation for having the best falafel in town so its rare that you’ll be happy with only one falafel ball.

5)      Then there are all the ice cream shops. Asking to try any of the flavours of ice cream will usually result in a bored shop assistant dishing out small spoons of ice cream, until they finally send you running or force you to buy ice cream.

6)      Supermarkets. Surprisingly, supermarkets are often promoting food items and will hand them out as you walk in. Icy poles have been quite common, but you’ll get a whole variety of products.

7)  Festivals (פסטיבל). Always thought it was “Pasta ball”.  Jerusalem, especially in the summer, is full of festivals. Shuk festival, bread festival, wine festival, beer festival, puppet festival, arts and crafts festival – any excuse for a party. There will usually be some form of free food at these street parties, so you will hardly go hungry.

8)      Nespresso @ Mamilla – I’m not entirely sure how long this will be going on for, but for the moment, this innovative shop is handing out coffee tastings of your choice. The coffee shop across the street isn’t too happy about this.

9)      I can’t believe I’m actually writing this, but when it doubt – there are lots and lots of soup kitchens located all over. Maybe don’t go showing off to your friends if you did grab a free meal from one of them.

10)  Friday night meals at the Kotel. A man, by the name of Jeff Seidel helps tourists and nomads find meals to join on a Friday night. I’ve never actually tried it out, but I’ve heard some very interesting stories. On that note, I have been asked by a man on the street on a Friday night if he could join us for dinner. Of course we said yes.


11) English Cakes and other assorted bakeries - usually on a Friday, but sometimes on other days, English Cakes bakery (located all around Jerusalem) hands out free tastings.


12) This one is particularly stingy. Go out to eat with a friend, don't order anything, and enjoy the bread and salads they put on the table. You might even be lucky and your friend will give you his/her leftovers. 


13) Crashing a kiddush on Shabbat day - many Shuls host a kiddush after praying with all sorts of food and drink. This isn't unique to Israel, but you have to know the right shuls to get the right food. Also, get there before 12pm or else you'll probably miss it.

14)  And finally, although its not free – there are a colossal amount of coupon/discount websites that advertise cheap deals on restaurants.

Hungry in Jerusalem? I don’t think so.