Israeli hotel breakfasts have a great reputation for a reason – they offer a lot of choices, have amazing food, and are more bang for your buck. But I’ve often noticed that the service, even in high-end hotels, isn’t always the best.
Maybe it’s because most guests are staying in the hotel and, since breakfast is included, are unlikely to tip, or because there are not enough staff to take care of the number of guests.
But the Mamilla Hotel is different. As soon as we walked into the dining room, a waiter approached us and asked us if we wanted juice or coffee. “Yes,” I answered, and almost immediately a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice was brought to the table, and a few minutes later my strong hafuch. He checked in with us several times to see if we needed refills.
I was there with my favorite daughter and favorite husband on a Friday morning, celebrating said daughter’s birthday. The dining room is large and airy, with plenty of space both inside and outside. We chose to sit inside, partly to be closer to the buffet.
My favorite daughter is highly allergic to tomatoes – not easy in Israel. She told the waiter, and he brought over the head waiter, who turned her over to one of the chefs. The chef walked her through the buffet, showing her everything that had tomatoes, and offered to make her anything she wanted, but she said the buffet had plenty of options.
My husband went straight for the “omelet man,” which he always enjoys. I chose a cute little frying pan that had one egg of shakshuka because if I eat a two-egg omelet, I won’t have much room for anything else. The egg was soft-boiled, and the tomato sauce had just enough of a kick to make it interesting.
I then moved on to the smoked fish area, concentrating on the smoked salmon. It had apparently been made with beetroot and had a lovely red rim around the pink flesh. It was delicious, and I happily paired it with fresh bread and cream cheese from the buffet. Along with the salmon, I made myself a cheese plate that included blue cheese, Manchego, and Gouda.
Room for dessert?
I was unfortunately starting to get full, but there is always room for dessert, right?
First, I needed something a little healthy to assuage the guilt I was about to incur by eating dessert, so I tasted a few salads – all fresh and enjoyable. There must have been at least a dozen different salads on offer, as well as a salad bar to make your own.
For dessert, I went for a small slice of cheesecake and a small slice of something chocolaty, along with another very good cup of coffee. We rolled our way out of the dining room and didn’t eat again until Friday night dinner. The breakfast costs NIS 140 per person, and I think it offers very good value for money.
- Mamilla Hotel breakfast
- Sunday-Friday, 7 a.m.-10:30 a.m.
- Phone: (02) 548-2222
- Kashrut: Jerusalem Rabbinate
The writer was a guest of the hotel.