Blessing on Saint Marks Place

I must have walked passed the Holyland Market about a hundred times without realizing the gems that it has in store. I wasn’t aware of the unique and delicious food with which Israel is brimming. In the real Holy Land, I fell in love with halloumi cheese, labane cheese, bourekas (a savory puff pastry), and laffa (a big, thin pita bread) with zatar (a spice blend of sesame seeds, sumac, and thyme). These ingredients characterized the core that made up every meal during my Israeli adventure. The new flavors stuck with me.

Holyland Market provides East Villagers and Judea-ophiles with all these Israeli staples and more like Bissli—a snack that ranges in flavors from grill to falafel, Bamba—like a cheese puff but with peanut butter instead of cheese, and chocolate spread. Excellent rugelah—a chocolate pastry, classic Israeli brands for chocolate and cheese, and necessities like Turkish coffee and pickled vegetables can be found.

These flavors were all fairly new to me—the simple pleasure of a fresh pita bread was a taste experience I’d never encountered, let alone having the doughy bread pocket be filled with the creamiest hummus and sprinkled with such unique and delicate spices. The foods of Israel are a unique balance of intense flavor and sensational texture.

My tasting was a mere ten days—not nearly enough to taste everything, but certainly enough to whet my appetite. Back in Manhattan, I feel blessed to have Holyland Market, which has versions of all my favorite Sephardic and Ashkenazi basics.

Holyland also has an extensive range of Elite cow chocolate. Creamier than the dark chocolate so popular now in the states, para (Hebrew for cow) chocolate is a richer, sweeter form—a reminder that life should be sweet as can be. And, in Israel, it is.