It’s a partnership between two childhood friends who grew up in Acre and chef Uri Arnold, whose mother is Egyptian. The food is Middle Eastern with a modern twist.
By LINDA GRADSTEINRoots, Acre(photo credit: Courtesy)
A Jew, a Christian and a Muslim decide to open a kosher restaurant in Acre. It’s not the first line of a joke, but a true story of how the chef restaurant Roots came to exist.It’s a partnership between two childhood friends who grew up in Acre and chef Uri Arnold, whose mother is Egyptian. The food is Middle Eastern with a modern twist. Prices are quite reasonable for a chef’s restaurant and portions are large.I recently took my youngest son, Mishael, 16, on a mini-vacation to Acre to celebrate the end of the school year, and I had no doubt where I wanted to go for dinner.Roots is right next to the Knights Hall, and there is a free parking lot in front. The restaurant is part of the Citadel of Acre, which dates back to the 11th century, and the architecture is beautiful, with large, vaulting brick-covered walls.The tables are spaced far apart, and there are also tables outside for those who prefer. The night we visited, there was a bat mitzvah party outside and the restaurant was quite full. There is a bottle of Alco-gel on each table, and the servers all wore their masks correctly.A large table set for about 20 ran down the center of the restaurant, and as we were leaving Acre Mayor Shimon Lankri came in. They were holding a farewell dinner for someone in the mayor’s office who was retiring.I highly recommend the meze platter (NIS 88) as a shared appetizer. It is also a good choice as a meal for vegetarians or vegans. There are six homemade salads, including hummus, green tehina and eggplant cream served in individual frying pans. One frying pan had labaneh (tangy sour yogurt) that tasted so much like dairy labaneh that I actually looked around for the kashrut certificate to make sure that the meat restaurant was kosher. It is made with coconut cream and is fantastic.The meze platter also includes a large fattoush salad, a Lebanese salad of cucumber, tomato, parsley and red onion with toasted pita croutons on top, as well as a large loaf of homemade bread. There are even several homemade grape leaves, and tiny kubbeh (the only part of this appetizer platter which contains meat).At this point, I was glad that my dining companion was a 16-year-old boy with a healthy appetite, as mine was quickly waning. Adi Sayed (the brother of one of the owners and our host) also brought us the fish shwarma, which was a mound of white fish with tehina and sumac, and the ceviche to try. Both were excellent.For main courses, we tried the fresh veal fillet (NIS 150), which was a generous portion of filet mignon topped with peas. When Sayed asked me how I wanted it done and I answered “medium rare,” his face lit up. He said most Israelis order their meat medium-well or even well done, and it pains him to see good meat ruined this way. The filet was delicious and a perfect medium rare. We also tried the maqluba (NIS 72), an Arab-inspired dish of mixed spring chicken with cinnamon-scented rice and vegetables, cooked in a pan and then turned upside down. I only wished I had more room in my stomach.For dessert, we shared a tray of three small desserts, which included hot baklava cigars, which were amazing, and small cups of Malabi and a frozen chocolate dessert which I enjoyed less.There is a very extensive wine and alcohol list. As I was drinking alone (remember, my companion was only 16), I had a half-bottle of the Gamla Cabernet Sauvignon (NIS 60), which paired beautifully with the food.While most people will visit Roots as part of a trip up North, there are some people who come to Acre just to visit the restaurant. Sayed told me of a young man from Modi’in Illit who called him recently and asked if the restaurant was open. When he said yes, the man said, “Save me a table. I’ll be there in two hours.” He drove up with his wife and son, ate dinner, and drove home.I’m not sure I’d do that, but I am already planning my next visit to Roots.RootsKashrut: Acre Rabbinate1 Weizmann Street, AcrePhone: (04) 884-8040Sunday-Thursday, noon-10 p.m.The writer was a guest of the restaurant.
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