One of the most fun things about writing restaurant reviews is that both friends and people I don’t even know ask me for restaurant recommendations. I’m always a little nervous about giving a recommendation, as so much of each person’s experience is individual.
Yet after a second visit to David 16 (I first reviewed it when it opened a year ago), I will definitely add the restaurant to the short list of places I would recommend.
This is a high-end dining experience, not fast food, and the price is also on the higher end. But I think it offers good value for money and is a great place for a special occasion dinner.
Restaurant has a hidden parking lot
Here’s an important tip: the restaurant, located across the street from the David Citadel Hotel, has a hidden parking lot that it will open if you call.
Inside, the space is elegant, with a large, illuminated bar. The tables are spaced far apart, and the whole room just feels luxurious.
The service is also excellent. The manager, Elad Cohen, although just 23, obviously loves his job and is very good at it. He made us feel welcome and enthusiastically described the dishes he recommended.
Appetizers are heavy on raw fish
I often think that appetizers are the most interesting part of the menu, and I have been known to order two or three appetizers and skip the main course. Here, the appetizers are heavy on raw fish, which happens to be one of my favorite food groups.
The menu was designed by famous Israeli chef Orel Kimchi.
Elad said he would order for us, so my foodie son and I sat back and relaxed. Then it got really fun. One of the partners, Avshalom Cohen, a winemaker, offered us a glass of his latest vintage, which he makes in the Eila Valley. It was absolutely delicious.
Then the appetizers began arriving.
The roasted Jerusalem artichoke (NIS 68) was delicious and not something I would ever make at home. The artichoke sat on a bed of labaneh made with cashews, served with s’hug – the spicy condiment, made with za’atar – on top of the labaneh and Jerusalem artichoke chips.
I love raw fish and tried several raw fish appetizers. The Yellowtail Sashimi (NIS 85) was fresh and a little spicy with leche de tigre, coriander, green apple and celery salsa, chive oil, and crispy quinoa.
One of my favorite foods is goose liver (save your judgment, I’ve heard it all), and the Foie Gras Bruschetta (NIS 120) with pistachios, chimichurri, grape jam, and chili was buttery and decadent.
Each appetizer was made with care, and I would order each one again.
I could have stopped eating at this point (and probably should have), but Elad insisted I had to at least try the main courses.
I love filet mignon (NIS 215), and the steak that arrived was cooked to a perfect medium rare. It had a deep, beefy taste and was just an excellent piece of meat.
My son had one of his favorite cuts that was a special that night, a picanha steak – a Brazilian cut that has lately become very trendy. I confess I was too full to even taste his dish.
It’s also the kind of place where customers talk to each other. A well-dressed couple walked in, and as they passed my table, the husband said, “You’re Linda Gradstein.”
“Do I know you?” I asked him.
“No, but I know you,” he replied.
I soon struck up a conversation with Nathan Bigman and Rachel Karlin, who had come to celebrate Rachel’s birthday and turned out to be fellow wine people.
“When we go out, the ambiance is as important as the food,” Rachel told me. “David 16 is just the environment we’re looking for: classy and cozy, with friendly service and mellow background music that lets us have a conversation. Also, order the potatoes; they’re outrageous.”
I had a bite of two excellent desserts and waddled home feeling very satisfied. I realized later that we had been there almost three hours!
Perhaps the best recommendation I can give is that when my friend Rabbi Matt Berkowitz asked me to recommend a restaurant in Jerusalem for a special dinner, my first reaction was “Go to David 16.”
David 16
16 King David Street
Tel: (02) 501-5555
Hours: Sun.-Thurs., 6 p.m.-midnight
Kashrut: Jerusalem Rabbinate
(Mehadrin steaks available with advance notice)
Wheelchair accessible
The writer was a guest of the restaurant