New boutique for desserts sweeten life in Tel Aviv

A new café/patisserie has just opened in the staid Tel Aviv suburb of Givatayim, bringing a touch of European panache to the rather tired main drag of the town, Katznelson Street.

Among the run-down groceries and faded storefronts badly in need of a coat of paint, Shiriz stands out as the place to be. It’s a designer-created pavement café that would look more at home in a Paris arrondissement than in the rather jaded middle-class suburb that is Givatayim.

The brainchild of Liav and Shiri Rivlin, Shiriz has been open for only a little over a month and already has an enthusiastic following.

Invited to sample the offerings recently, I took my vegan son (or, rather, he took me), as vegan cakes make up quite a substantial part of the menu.

Sitting outside, under expansive white sun shades, at three in the afternoon could have been too hot, but luckily there was a light breeze which made for a very pleasant atmosphere.

Avi, the manager, took good care of us, starting with a regular cappuccino with almond milk for David, and a decaf with skim milk for me. No one loves a good strong coffee more than I do, but my cutoff time, if I want to enjoy a good night’s sleep, is about 1 p.m. The coffee beans come from Italy and are ground in situ for each fresh cup. No wonder it was so good that I instantly ordered another cup (NIS 15).

Like many new businesses, the creation of Shiriz is a direct result of the corona. The Rivlins were owners of a successful events organizing company, Rivlin Hafakot Ltd. Suddenly, there were no events to be organized, and the enterprising couple decided to go into catering, spotted a gap in their chosen location and thus Shiriz was born.

“The concept of Shiriz is a boutique for desserts,” explains Avi. The company employs a pastry cook, Natalie, who studied the profession for three years in Europe and whose job is to add the finishing touch to the pastries, which are supplied by another company specializing in this.

Before tackling the cakes, I was able to taste one of the sandwiches which are now also available.

I chose smoked salmon in whole wheat bread smeared with pesto, arugula leaves and cherry tomatoes. It was very good and could stand on its own as a satisfying light lunch (NIS 35).

The first set of cakes to appear at our table were the vegan ones, three totally different concoctions, with a common theme of rich chocolate running through them. The first was a recreation of the Ferrero-Rocher candies with a similar cream, and thick ganache coating. The second was a triangular salt/caramel creation filled with broken beigele. The third was a Pie Belgie (Belgian Pie) – several layers of rich dark chocolate with a few walnuts added. “Decadent” doesn’t even come close as the epithet for these creations.

“We have a huge demand for vegan cakes,” says Avi. “I would say that of the almost 50 different cakes we serve, about 20% are vegan.”

The non-vegan were equally wonderful, including a lemon meringue pie and an alfajores (Argentinean caramel sponge). There are many more types of cake, and also packets of cookies which are available for purchase. (All cakes, NIS 32/35.)

Outside the shop sits an old dining trolley with jugs of cold water and free bubble gum for children.

“We found it in the flea market in Jaffa,” says Avi proudly.

For a sweet and pleasurable break from routine, Shiriz is definitely the place to be.