Treasures Beyond Food

It is an opportunity to delve deeper into the culture and stories behind each delicious bite. It is a journey that offers an authentic taste of Palestine and allows participants to live like a local during their experience. In addition, it facilitates encounters with local farmers, supports small producers of ethnic food, and strengthens small businesses and initiatives. Many visitors who come to Palestine do so intentionally, enduring a number of occupation-related obstacles.I speak from personal experience because I witness how such tours take visitors to locations that offer authentic Palestinian food and drink. One of my favorite stops is Khadra, a small shop in the heart of Ramallah’s old city, where tourists can enjoy and taste fresh seasonal fruits and vegetables that are sourced from local farms. Tasting food at Khadra is not only an experience of flavors but also honors the resilience and commitment of Palestinian farmers who endure all kinds of adverse circumstances, including settler violence and harassment by occupation soldiers, to preserve their land and local traditions. Similarly, the youth village Kufur Ni’ma near Ramallah organizes food events and offers courses with the goal of raising awareness through food among youth and the population in general of the importance of the land. Ramallah’s Dalia Association also organizes events at Bait Alkarmeh, its kitchen that is located in Kufr Aqab, aiming to expand and enhance the Palestinian food culture.

Falafel are offered everywhere in Palestine, but in each city, they have their unique flavor. Enjoy them with salad and pickles in pita bread or for breakfast with hummus and ful (smashed fava beans). You definitely should not miss the ones offered by Umbashi Falafel in Jenin or Falafel Abusamaha in Al-Bireh.

At local bakeries – which you find in every city and town, such as Mario’s in Al-Bireh – visitors have the chance to try many kinds of mana’ish (small salty pastries and pies) prepared from local ingredients that include olive oil, zaatar (thyme, either fresh or dried and mixed with sesame seeds), Palestinian goat cheese, eggs, or meat. In Jerusalem, be sure to taste ka’ek simsim (sesame bread), sold by street vendors around Damascus Gate and the Garden Tomb. In Hebron, visitors can find delicious fattet al-krum, a summer salad made with old bread, tomatoes, and laban jameed (a special sauce made of dried goat or sheep milk yogurt). Visit one of the popular sha’abi restaurants that offer mansaf (lamb meat cooked in dried sheep and goat-milk yogurt, served on a piece of thin bread that is covered with a bed of rice, and topped with roasted almonds or pine nuts), maqloubeh (meat, fried vegetables, and rice placed in layers in a pot and flipped upside down before serving; the vegetarian version is tasty as well), or kidre (a dish that originates from Hebron, is prepared with rice, meat, and samn baladi (ghee), and cooked in the oven in a special pot made of copper). And if you wish to eat musakhan (a very popular authentic Palestinian dish of onions that are succulently fried in olive oil, served on thick oven-baked taboun bread that has been drenched in olive oil and chicken broth, adorned and enhanced by the special taste and color of sumac, and topped with roasted almonds) head to Tulkarem, as their musakhan ensures a unique experience!

In terms of drinks, Palestine offers tourists a range of options for all tastes, and local drinks can accompany the delicious Palestinian local cuisine from north to south. Wine is made from international grapes to produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, or Rosé wines or from indigenous Palestinian grapes, such as Nadim Bituni and Cremisan Baladi red wines and Hamdani Jandali and Dabouki white wines. Local producers include Latroun Winery, Taybeh Winery, Domaine Kassis, Philokalia Natural Winery, and Cremisan Wine Estate. If you prefer a local beer, you can choose from a wide selection of beers and ales drafted by Taybeh Brewing Company or Shepherds from Birzeit Brewery. If you like something a bit stronger, arak made by local producers such as Muaddi Craft Distillery, Arak Philokalia, or Arak Ramallah will delight your palate. And those who prefer to avoid alcohol should definitely take a stroll across the souqs that are found in all towns and cities and stop to enjoy one of the traditional fresh drinks, such as kharroub (carob) and sous (licorice), that are sold by peddlers who tend to don the local street vendors’ traditional red dress, wearing wide trousers and a tarboush (fez).