When a restaurant keeps popping up on your Facebook feed, it’s often a sign that you should try it. Maalya, which means abundance in Aramaic, isn’t easy to find, but it’s worth the effort. Even after my favorite daughter and I arrived at the location in Park Kramim, Kiryat Anavim, we had some trouble finding the restaurant – and then couldn’t find the entrance. Eventually, we succeeded, and I’m glad we did.
Maalya is a relatively new chef restaurant just outside Jerusalem. Moti Yosef, one of the partners, said they opened in August after spending last summer training the staff. Then October 7 happened and, like many other restaurants, they closed – as much of their staff was called up. Eight months later, one of the partners, a brigadier general, is still in Gaza, as is his son, but that’s another story.
“Our concept is a chef-style Mediterranean kitchen with the flavors of Spain, France, Portugal, and Morocco,” Moti told me.
The décor of Maalya is modern with an impressive bar near the entrance.
My favorite daughter and I decided to start our dinner with a cocktail – she ordered a Jerusalem Spring from the cocktail menu, and I asked bartender Yuval to surprise me. I received an electric blue concoction made with blue curaçao, that I enjoyed very much. Hers was elderflower and lavender on a gin base. All cocktails are NIS 52 and pack quite a punch.
For appetizers, my daughter chose the shwarma (NIS 72), and I went with cigars made with sweetbreads (NIS 88). I’ve yet to meet a cigar I don’t like and I’m a big fan of sweetbreads. The portion of three large cigarim was delicious, although I couldn’t tell whether the meat was actually sweetbreads. The homemade harissa that came alongside the cigarim was especially good. My daughter’s shwarma was served in katayef pancakes (the small pancakes usually eaten during Ramadan and stuffed with cheese or nuts) which I had never seen before.
For the main course, Rafaella and I shared a delicious sea bass filet (NIS 136) served with a sauce that had a nice kick to it and homemade pasta stuffed with corn that was truly special, and a really tasty hamburger (NIS 98) served on homemade brioche with double-fried crispy fries and fried onions on the side. While everything was good, this burger was the stand-out for me and something I could eat frequently. Most of Maalya’s meat is locally sourced, including from the Golan Heights, and is fresh rather than frozen. This is reflected in its quality.
Maalya is now starting to serve lunch every day from 12-4 p.m. with deals on business lunches. There is also a Kabbalat Shabbat every Friday afternoon with a special food and drinks menu, as well as live music. Now that Shabbat starts so late, that sounds like a great way to welcome the Sabbath.
Note: Currently, the menu is only availble in Hebrew but the servers can translate if you need help.
- Maalya
- Park Kramim
- Kiryat Anavim
- Open: Sun.,- Thu., 12-4 p.m.; 6-10 p.m.; Fri., 12 p.m.- one hour before Shabbat
- Phone: 053-390-2570
- Kashrut: Rabbanut Mateh Yehuda
The writer was a guest of the restaurant.