Italia 38 is unique for several reasons. First, the primary owner, Eitan Sylvester, is 23 years old and opened his place less than a month ago, after several months of reserve duty on the Lebanese border.
Second, everything on the menu is just NIS 38, with extra charges for add-ons to the pizza and salads. And third, the food is very good.
“I’ve lost so many friends in this war,” Sylvester said. “I was working with my mom in real estate and making good money. But there’s more to life than money. Giving people good food and seeing them enjoy it really makes me happy.”
What's on the menu at Italia 38?
The menu is simple – pizza with various toppings, several types of pasta, and a few salads. I let Sylvester choose for me, and he brought me a pizza with pesto, Bulgarian cheese, and tomatoes, as well as ravioli in a pesto sauce. He said he decided to obtain mehadrin kashrut so that everyone can eat there.
A little while later, my daughter, who is allergic to tomatoes, arrived, and asked Sylvester if he offers a white pizza.
“I’ll make you one,” he said with a smile.
Sylvester said he concentrates on using high-quality ingredients like fresh cheese and fresh pasta. Our pizza came cut into relatively small slices, but a pizza and a salad is definitely enough for two people for a light meal. That means that even with add-ons like mushrooms, pesto, and Bulgarian cheese, a couple can eat for less than NIS 100.
I really liked the pizza crust, made from dough that rises for at least 24 hours. It was not too thick but stood up to the toppings well. Both the marinara sauce and the pesto were very tasty.
The ravioli in pesto sauce (a few shekels more than the other pastas) had my favorite husband and me fighting over the last morsel. Actually, we saved a few raviolis for my favorite daughter, who can’t eat tomatoes.
I didn’t try the salads, although they looked nice and fresh. There is a panzanella salad, a tuna salad, and a salad of the day.
The menu is displayed prominently on the wall, which is cheerfully painted with the colors of the Italian flag. There are about seven tables and chairs, most of which were occupied by families the evening of our visit.
Although just 23, Sylvester is a gracious host, stopping at each table to say hello, and asking for feedback about the food. He clearly enjoys interacting with his customers, and he lit up when a woman told him, “This is the only pizza my daughter will eat.”
- Italia 38
- Hadar Mall, second floor
- 26 General Pierre Koenig St., Jerusalem
- Sunday–Thursday, 9 a.m.–9:30 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m.–3 p.m.
- Kashrut: Mehadrin
The writer was a guest of the restaurant.