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But is that McFalafel kosher?

David wrote yesterday on Israelity about the introduction to the Israeli market of the McFalafel. While I’m not running out to make McDonald’s my new falafel joint (Falafel Oved in Jerusalem is the best in the country – and I’ve written about it before, so it must be true, right?), there were a few interesting tidbits in this article on YNET about the new McCulinary offering.

Specifically, did you know that 30% of all McDonald’s in Israel are kosher? That number was quite surprising. When McDonald’s first opened, there were exactly three kosher branches – in Ra’anana, Beit Shean and Meveseret Zion. The big restaurant in the center of Jerusalem, with the hulking Ronald McDonald statue – treife.

At the time, McDonald’s Israel CEO Omri Padan was quite outspoken about his anti-religious opinions; opening even those three McDonald’s was a concession to coercive market forces, he hinted at the time.

And then when he wanted to actually open a kosher McDonald’s in Jerusalem after all, the Rabbinate refused, saying that all outlets of the same chain in the city needed to be kosher. And so, the McDonald’s in the Central Bus Station served only kosher meat, no cheeseburgers and was closed on Shabbat – but without kashrut certification.

In the last couple of years, McDonald’s has figured out how to get around the Rabbinate’s injunction, by opening a sub-brand which replaces the red background on which “McDonald’s” is written with a blue strip, along with prominent text in English and Hebrew reading “Kosher.” The fabled arches remain their traditional yellow.

The truth is, I’ve long since stopped caring about being able to get my hands on a Big Mac. What was once a delicacy in my youth (I lived in a suburb where McDonald’s only arrived when I graduated high school) is now just a source of unnecessary weight gain (although, as David points out in his post, McDonald’s claims the new McFalafel only has 499 calories – not 500, mind you – and a moderate 6.7% fat.

Padan also shared the results of a McDonald’s survey which found that “the majority of the secular public, 70%, wants kosher meat, 15% says it doesn’t matter, and only 5% want non-kosher meat.”

Does that mean that, if you squint your eyes really tight, McDonald’s is actually kosher? Not so fast. While McDonald’s Israel won’t sell you anything with bacon (there goes my old favorite, the Egg McMuffin), there are still cheeseburgers available. But, as “only 0.25% of adults ask for it,” Padan says, “we’ve slowly lowered its profile. Why should we openly display the cheeseburger if no child asks for it?”

For the kosher (and non-kosher) eating public, though, there’s another reason why McDonald’s might not be as attractive in Israel as overseas: the price. A Big Mac can easily set you back $10 or more. That’s certainly not what I’d call a happy meal.

Um, I’ll have McFalafel with cheese

Something about this just isn’t right.

McDonald’s in Israel has announced that this week a new item will begin appearing on menus in the 160 branches dotting the country – the McFalafel!

I guess we shouldn’t be too surprised. The McKebab has already been a staple on the menu for a while, in an effort by the chain, according to Israel CEO Omri Padan, to adjust their products to “the Israeli taste.”

The McFalafel will be sold either inside Iraqi pita bread with tahini and chopped salad, in a box containing three to five pieces with tahini, or as a meal with fries or green salad and a drink.

A Ynet report on the culinary development says that chickpea delicacy and Israeli fast food staple will be fried in canola oil and will meet the health standards set by the chain (which if you watched Supersize Me are obviously rigid). It contains 499 calories and only 6.7% fat.

It remains to be seen, with the thousands of falafel servers around the country, offering the fried balls in every imaginable combination, consistency and style, why someone who would choose to go to McDonald’s in the first place would choose to order the newest item on the menu.

But I remember thinking the same thing when I was growing up in New England and my local McDonald’s branches started making lobster rolls (I can’t remember if it was called McLobster or McClaw). The item is apparently still on the menu. And apparently, the McFalafel has been a popular item at McDonald’s outlets in Egypt and other Arab countries for years.

So there’s hope for the McFalafel in Israel – just wondering if there’ll be a ‘with cheese’ option.

McD’s vs. Israeli fast-food

As seen in the weekend edition of Yediot Achronot, from McDonald’s, one of the only American food franchises to still be succeeding in Israel:

Advertisement #1: Rice cakes with white spreadable cheese, 5% — 171 calories per 100 grams, as opposed to a McRoyal meal and regular fries — 185 calories per 100 grams (how much is 100 grams out of an entire McRoyal)

Advertisement #2 on the opposite page: Corn schnitzels and white rice — 201 calories (per 100 grams) vs. a kids’ meal of a Mini Royal and small fries — 196 calories.
Or, a veggie schnitzel and pasta — 232 calories vs. a children’s meal of a burger and small fries — also 232 calories.

Calorie counting aside, what I liked was the juxtapositioning of corn schnitzels, Tivol and classic Israeli white cheese next to McD’s products. The question is, how does a falafel or sabich weigh in next to a Quarter Pounder?

Beaten with hummous, Israel goes for falafel record

We may temporarily no longer hold the world’s record for the biggest plate of hummous, but Israel still has big balls – falafel balls that is.

An Israeli chef at the New York restaurant Olympic Pita has used thousands of chickpeas, 40 liters of oil and a variety of spices to create the world’s largest falafel ball, Ha’aretz reported.

Weighing in at 10.9 kilograms and with a circumference of more than a meter, the falafel ball is expected to enter the Guinness Book of World Records in the coming days.

“The record set today is nothing compared to the goal we have set for ourselves for next year – the world’s largest gefilte fish,” said Israeli Consul General Asaf Shariv, kicking off a week’s worth of Israel-related events in New York, including the annual Israeli day parade on Fifth Avenue.

I’m not sure if I’d want to bite into the humoungus falafel ball. Falafel joints throughout the country have making the delicacies down to a science, and usually, the smaller the better. A falafel ball of that size just seems too much of a good thing.

As Israel’s number one fast food (I’m sure we stole this from our Arab neighbors as well), there are plenty places to find the balls fried to perfection. I’d be very happy to let another country take the biggest falafel ball award – maybe we can convince Lebanon to make their own and give us back the humous record.

Israel Independence Day

Happy Independence Day!

As the smells of barbecued meats permeate the country, let’s keep in mind what’s special about Israel – besides everyone barbecuing on Yom Ha’atazmaut.

One of the funniest – and most astute – lists has been written by Israelity contributor and stand up comedian par excellance Benji Lovitt – You can read the whole list of ’61 More Things I Love About Israel’ here.

But a few of my favorites are:

31. I love that my cab driver offered me a peach and that I accepted it. That will happen in America when falafel balls fly.

43. I love words like “teetchadesh” that neither exist nor make sense in the English language. “Wow, cool shirt! Enjoy using your new thing!” Nice try.

57. I love the superhuman Israeli hearing which allows them to pick up the “beep beep beep” of the news even while someone is using a jackhammer three feet away.

Whatever way you celebrate Israel Independence Day, may your celebration be joyous.

 

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