You have to envy the residents of Rehovot and surroundings for having such a good restaurant on their doorstep. We had a long drive to sample the food but I can unequivocally say that it was worth it. Nina Bianca, which we have frequented several times, is well worth the effort of getting there.
The place itself has not changed since our last visit a couple of years ago. Still large, airy, divided into different seating areas, with an eye-catching decor of white brick, high and low ceilings, and striking murals – we knew we were in for a culinary treat when we arrived there recently for dinner.
The menu is still only in Hebrew but plans are afoot to provide an English translation. And our waitress, Ola, was very helpful.
What's on the menu?
We chose two starters, a white fish bruschetta (NIS 87) and fish schwarma (NIS 79). My companion tackled the bruschetta, consisting of an unidentified white fish served on Yemenite bread, complemented by a variety of flavors, including aioli, something spicy, and something a little sweet.
My starter consisted of three different fish – denis, salmon, and lavrak, cubed and nestling on a bed of tehina. Both first courses were excellent and prepared our palates for even better tastes to come.
My companion chose the whole-denis dish, baked in the on-site taboon, covered in a mix of herbs with grilled tomato and fried onion. (NIS 142). Judging by what remained on the plate, the fish must have been very good.
I chose grilled salmon with potato puree and fresh spinach with lemon. (NIS 138). It was such a generous serving that I was compelled to leave half, and when the manager said he wanted us to try another dish I told him we could only taste it if we took it home, to which he agreed.
I’m glad I did, as this dish, burratta, was a revelation. Made from mozzarella with an outer casing of hard cheese, it was filled with whipped cream and cherry tomatoes – quite extraordinary. (NIS 87).
When it came to dessert, I vetoed the cheesecake that we had ordered on our previous two meals out – and instead chose the chocolate option. It was basically eclairs filled with vanilla patisserie cream, and toppings of crunchy hazelnut and some chocolate mousse, with a chocolate ganache over the whole creation. To call it decadent would be an understatement. (NIS 55).
To accompany our meal we drank a bottle of Lueria Chardonnay, a young unoaked wine from a prestigious winery and found it to be the perfect liquid refreshment.
Two very good cappuccinos later and we were on our way home, both in complete agreement that Nina Bianca has maintained its high standards established years ago.
- Nina Bianca,
- Bussy Saint Georges 9
- Tsomet Bilu, Kiryat Ekron
- Tel: (08) 948 0080.
- Opening times: Sun.-Thurs. 12 p.m.-11 p.m.; Fri., 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; Sat., one hour after Shabbat.
- Kashrut: Local rabbinate.
- Wheelchair accessible.
The writer was a guest of the restaurant