After years of cooking at Ocean restaurant in Jerusalem and HaSalon in Tel Aviv, chef Eyal Shani, along with his partner Shahar Segal, opened North Abraxas in 2009. The accessible version of the prestigious HaSalon, North Abraxas is an intimate and lively restaurant serving Shani’s creative food. It places raw local ingredients at the center of the tables, all of which are covered with brown parchment paper
But North Abraxas doesn’t just sell food; it sells an atmosphere. The open kitchen, where cooks prepare food in front of diners sitting around the bar, and the informal service break the rules of the diner-waiter ritual. This distinctive style, coupled with poetic menu descriptions, nonchalant food presentation, and engaging service, has become the hallmark of Shani-Segal establishments — an empire of dozens of restaurants in Israel and worldwide. In Tel Aviv, North Abraxas offers the clearest expression of Shani’s cooking philosophy.

Zucchinis. Photo by: Noam Preisman

“Chef Eyal Shani, known to every household in Israel through his role as a judge on MasterChef Israel, was already one of the most prominent chefs of Israeli cuisine long before joining the show. In the days of Ocean restaurant, he praised and consecrated raw ingredients, long before it became a global trend. Shani was ahead of his time, placing vegetables in the center rather than as a side dish,” remarks Oren Assif.

“To truly understand the magic of North Abraxas, order a slice of cabbage cake braised in lamb stock. Among the mains, look for those served in pans, like the chraimeh or a daily special of a lamb cutlet; it will likely be tastier than you can possibly imagine.”