Entrecote: A well done dining experience - review

Entrecote is a high-end, elegant dining experience. No cholent for you at this restaurant!

That said, Entrecote is an enjoyable dining experience for anyone who appreciates fine food and fine dining.

Entrecote was founded and is owned by Shimon Assaraf, who has turned this mom-and-pop shop into a big business. The Entrecote empire includes the large and elegantly designed Entrecote restaurant with a series of rooms for private dining and smahot. Specialists in meat, the Entrecote people also own the Well Done butchery shops offering quality meat with the top kashrut. Well Done supplies the meat to several other high-end kosher restaurants. Assaraf wine, the Entrecote private label, is named for the owner and is available only at the restaurant.

Full disclosure: My dining companion and I were guests of the restaurant. We do not limit our kashrut observance to the Eda Haredit supervision. Thus, we can compare the dining experience at Entrecote to restaurants that have other kashrut supervision. Entrecote gets high marks by all standards.

Our host, Dov, and our charming waiter, Yoni, could not have been friendlier and more personable, as were other members of the staff. The tables were comfortable and well spaced, the variety on the menu was good, the dishes were nicely presented, enticing, and tasty.

Entrecote is a restaurant for connoisseurs of meat and wine. You’ll get the idea from the heavy meat menu and the full wall of wine at the far end of the room.

OUR MEAL began with a set of seven unique salads that are refilled upon request. Warning: portions at Entrecote are generous, and there is going to be a lot of food at this meal, so take it slow. The dishes are very tasty, so you will not want to leave anything on your plate.

The long bar at the far end of the room beckons you to order drinks. We chose a frothy strawberry cocktail, refreshing but more like a smoothy than a cocktail.

The Entrecote kitchen can be proud of its many appetizers. Each of the dishes is generous and unique.

The signature Asado Croquettes is an attractively presented platter of three crispy coated balls filled with slow-cooked meat on a platter decorated with tehina (NIS 102). The three balls are just a taste of one of this unique dish without overwhelming the meal.

The Caesar salad is a meal in itself (NIS 96). It was beautifully presented with vegetables, nuts and grains, topped with slices of grilled chicken breast.

We did not expect the house hummus appetizer to be a main course. The hummus, at Entrecote, is a full bowl of hummus topped with meat, and a salad on the side.

Most of the dishes are meaty, but the chef is cooperative about tailoring the dishes and, as per our request, served the hummus with the meat on the side.

My companion chose the recommended slow-cooked tongue in a chardonnay sauce, with fresh mushrooms (NIS 236), a specialty dish that you won’t find on most menus. The flavors were amazing, and, though the portion is generous, my companion finished every last forkful because who would leave any of this on the plate?

I chose the salmon main course (NIS 186) – two salmon steaks on a platter with pesto and a tasty sweet-and-sour sauce. The plate was nicely decorated with sculpted vegetables.

Our main courses were served with separate bowls of rice, potatoes, and vegetables.

Also available are shared mixed-meat platters that afford everyone at the table a chance to taste a variety of meats. Platters range from NIS 450 to NIS 750, depending on the mix: asado, lamb spareribs, brisket, chicken livers, lamb entrecote, butcher’s burger, veal sweetbread skewers, rib steak, lamb chops.

Children are also accommodated at NIS 89 per portion.

Even after the biggest meal, there is always dessert. The crème brûlée and the Belgian waffle are made in-house, but other desserts are brought in from an exclusive bakery catering to just a small number of select restaurants.

We were going to pass on dessert and try to waddle back up the hill, but the restaurant would hear of no such thing. Out came two beautifully presented desserts: a luscious lemon meringue pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce, and a plate of three scoops of fruit sorbet.

The restaurant is at the corner of Kiryat Hamada, at the traffic circle, as it swings around Har Hotzvim. In the late afternoon, as the offices in the Har Hotzvim tech park clear out, traffic can be challenging. There is street parking after working hours.