The next time you’re in the shuk and hunger pangs assault you, skip the falafel and the shwarma and head for Machne Asada – a colorful street food restaurant that opened just two weeks ago.
Yaron and Eti Jospe also own the fancy Valero’s restaurant next door, which Yaron says is about to get a complete new menu and concept, and opened Machane Asada to offer street-food wagyu beef. Wagyu is a type of cow, originally from Japan, in which the fat is marbled throughout the meat, instead of being on top. There are also stories of wagyu cows living a pampered life including getting massages, and one type of wagyu, called Kobe beef, fetches astronomical prices.
In Israel, these cows are imported from Australia and raised here. The meat is tender and rich and costs more than the usual Black Angus that is used for good steaks here. You can order your meal in a fresh challah roll, or on a bed of crispy potatoes (what they call animal style), which is what I recommend.
At Machane Asada (Asada is the Spanish equivalent of asado), whatever is not used at the chef restaurant next door finds its way to the street food. Perhaps ironically, the asado (NIS 54) served on a small challah was my least favorite of the items I tried. Asado is not my favorite cut and this one tasted a little bland.
But the other things we tasted were outstanding. I highly suggest the flat iron steak (NIS 54), 150 grams of thinly sliced wagyu steak on top of the crispy potatoes and with a special sauce that was simply delicious. The wagyu schnitzel (NIS 49) was also very good, as were the chorizos (NIS 49), made in-house. I’m usually not a big fan of chorizos as they are too spicy for my Ashkenazi palate, but these were juicy with just a hint of spice.
If you’re thirsty as well as hungry, there are fun cocktails for NIS 24. There’s the camparianos with Passiflora, peace and Campari, a Kiwi mohito and a gummy bear cocktail that has a gummy bear in the bottom.
Overall, just a fun place with good food.
Machne AsadaAgrippas 80Phone: 02-5436433Hours: 11 am – 11 pm (Sunday– Thursday)11 am – 3 pm (Friday)Hour after Shabbat – midnight (Saturday night)Kashrut: Rabbanut Jerusalem (all meat is chalak)
The writer was a guest of the restaurant.