Jerusalem Pita opens Tuesday
Jerusalem Pita, Coolidge Corner’s long-awaited Mediterranean grill, will open tomorrow, December 23, at 12pm for lunch and dinner. Owner Rada Roda will be offering up turkey and chicken shawarma, grilled rib steaks, and lamb chops, as well as appetizers and an Israeli salad bar — plus beer and wine.
Regular hours are as follows:
Sun – Thu: 10am – 10pm
Fri: 10am until 2 hours before Shabbat
Sat: Open 1.5 hours after Shabbat (during the winter)
From the looks of it, my expectation that it would be another Rami’s clone was unwarranted — the wider menu and better hours are very exciting. The Kosher Blog wishes them the best of luck (and we’ll report back once we’ve sampled the fare.)
Jerusalem Pita
Under the supervision of Rabbi Aaron Hamaoui
10 Pleasant Street, Brookline, MA 02446 (map)
617-739-2400
We wish them good luck as well. When we lived on Pleasant street, there was a restaurant very similar to that description in almost the exact location. The escapes me right now. Same block, different address. The food was really good, but unfortunately they did not last too long. My husband and I agree that they possibly made the best schnitzel anywhere. Will the new place be making schnitzel? That’s a perfect chanukah food. :-)
Ooo, I hadn’t even heard about this — that’s exciting news, thanks!
Carol, I think the restaurant you were thinking of was Cafe Aviv. They served “schnitzels as big as your face” as Jonathan likes to say! Let’s hope Jerusalem Pita does well in their grand opening!
As of 12:15 today, they were “open” but had no real food to serve. (”Maybe I could get you some chumus…?”) I was told to come back in a couple of hours. Not a possibility for me today, unfortunately.
I’m hoping to try them out on Thursday, but it’s disappointing to walk in for a Grand Opening and have the place be not-quite-open yet.
Carol – I saw schnitzel on the menu!
Just finished a falafel from them. It was pretty good. The place was packed and a little but crazy. They still have some kinks to work out, but I will be going back tomorrow for some Shawarma.
It’s opening day so I’m willing to cut them some slack. Still, I can’t wait for my first grilled steak!
Hey,
i’m actually the owner’s niece.
I will be working at the restaurant as a waitress/server.
I just wanted to apologize on behalf of my aunt and uncle for the “kinks” along the way today.
We have all been working hard, most of us 2 jobs at a time, and the snow doesn’t help much either!
(Both my aunt and uncle got an approximation of 1.5 hours of sleep last night–you do the math).
Just to let everyone know, my aunt is one of the best cooks that I have ever met (and I have met a lot–everyone in our family cooks).
This is very important to them, and to us.
Everyday we try to connect to Israel in our hearts as much as possible, and everyone knows that the best way to do that is through your stomachs!
So, even though there were some kinks to work out today, please come back to Jerusalem Pita–the food is excellent, I promise!
Thanks everyone!
Chag Sameach to all!
-Roni Levy
My wife and I went for lunch today, and we are glad we did. The owners are working hard to overcome some of the predictable start-up problems that a new restaurant faces, but the service is friendly and the food delicious. I had a simple shawarma in a pita, and my wife ordered the meorav Yerushalmi (beef, lamb, and chicken grilled with onions) in a pita. The shawarma itself was crispy and well-seasoned (the presence of cinnamon added a nice mizrachi aroma and flavor), and the meat in the meorav was even better. The salad options were fresh, and, in true Israeli fashion, they gave us a small plate to add extra salad as we ate.
I got the impression that the full (and extensive) menu may not be available at this point, but certainly quite a number of tasty dishes are. The price was reasonable, especially given the pleasant décor (keep in mind this is Brookline we’re talking about) and the top-notch hechsher. Most appetizers are $6 or $7, pitas are in the $10 range (less for falafel; add $1 for a laffa), and entrees start at $12 for falafel and go up to $30 for the lamb chops. They even have shakshuka on their Sunday brunch menu.
NB: they have not yet set up their credit card system, so for the time being, be sure to come with plenty of cash.
Given the paucity of kosher dining options in Brookline, a new restaurant should given the benefit of the doubt as it gets up to speed. That the food is already tasty and novel is all the more reason to brave the icy sidewalks and head over to Jerusalem Pita.
Sarah and I stopped in for lunch yesterday — we tried an array of hot appetizers, and their schnitzels in pita. I think Andrew’s review above sums up our experience perfectly. We’ll be heading back soon!
I will be adding their restaurants to my database for all my subscribers to include in their GPS devices.
If the owners would like to contact me they can have their restaurant highlighted to attract more travelers to their restaurant.
http://www.KosherRestaurantsGPS.com
We went yesterday for a late lunch and came away very impressed with the food. It’s a pleasure to eat a kosher steak, and a good one, in Boston. The lamb chops were also first rate. Schnitzel was excellent – crispy on the outside and juicy/tender on the insider. Falafel was as good as Rami’s and schwarma was better. Place was packed and a bit of a madhouse. They’ve got to figure out a better system for handling high traffic – there’s not enough wait staff, or people taking orders at the counter. It’s a small space but bigger than Rami’s. We’ll definitely go back and let’s hope they iron out the kinks.
Same thing here. Food was excellent. It was clear that any issues with us getting was mostly due to the fact that everyone there was still figuring “it” out.
Can someone please post a menu or it’s URL? Thanks.
I’ll scan a menu as soon as I get a chance.
So we finally went there for lunch today. Food was yummy. The nice lady behind the counter (Is she the owner?) and the rest of the people behind the counter were super nice and explained the menu very well. The decor was pleasant and tables clean.
Hubby had the schnitzel and I had the Meorav Yerushalmi. Both were in pita. We also ordered a side of fries. The fries were good too. The baby too enjoyed the meat, pita, and some of the pickled veggies from the salad bar. The yummy israeli salad bar brought it out on top. As you wait for your order to be prepared, you can appetize on some pickled veggies, lettuce, cabbage, olives, etc.
They need to find a better way for the food to go from order to table. We chose not to have table service and waited while we had some salads from the bar. There were people waiting in line for their orders in front of the salad bar (’scuse me, ’scuse me), which was a bit annoying. I also noticed that the waitress was working at the grill…odd. Maybe they are shortstaffed.
Overall, a nice experience.
Squash courts were closed last night, so decided to gorge on some meat instead. Not the healthiest trade-off I’ve ever made, but an enjoyable one. The owners, waitress and busboy/artist/friend were all extremely friendly. Got a steak platter with fries and chumus. Everything was excellent. Steak was a bit fatty for my tastes, but quite delicious. Chumus was exceptional and fresh. I’ll go a bit more economical next time, and with the wide variety of sandwiches and other dishes available, I’m looking forward to many more trips.
Better chumus than chumras! (Couldn’t resist a little punning…)
we went last night for dinner. wow!!! we will definitely be going there on a regular basis. The cigars were some of the best we’ve ever had.
Menu is available now — Download PDF
Amazing food. Had the swarma me’orav and it was awesome. The Moroccan cigars were delicious as well.
But…..The service needs to be improved. I ordered pickup and it took over a half hour. They need to make a place to give your order and then pay so you don’t have to wait on line to order and pay and then wait for 25 minutes etc. I also tried to call in advance – tried about 5 times over a 15 minute period and there was no answer. I wasn’t even sure if they were open. That being said – great food and they have a wide variety.
I went with my family last night. They were working really hard and get an A for effort. I have some critiques but want to say how thankful I am that someone is opening a kosher restaurant. I think that this is a true service to the community and I hope that they will be incredibly successful.
Food: The food was good on the whole although the salads at the salad bar could use a bit of improvement. The split pea soup was the best we have had anywhere in Brookline and the grilled food was pretty tasty. Unlike most of our other kosher establishments, they seemed to be serving a variety of alcoholic beverages and advertised cakes although I did not see them.
Price: I think that a bit more food and a slightly higher price would make sense. Adding a second skewer for kebabs and charging $20 instead of $17 would be a better value proposition and would not substantially hurt them.
Service: Anyone who has been knows that they are working out kinks. No credit card machine. It took nearly an hour to get our dinner. Lack of coherent ordering process, order management, serving, etc. They would be best served to decide what they want to be and to stick to a simple business model rather than trying to be all things to all people. If they want to be a nice restaurant that charges $30 for a steak, they need to have wait staff and a person to manage the front-end of the restaurant. If they want to run it café style, they should have all – or nearly all – the food ready and serve you at the counter within a minute or two of placing the order. The mixed model and long delivery times will not only frustrate customers, but will lead to low turnover in the restaurant.
While they are working through their logistical challenges I think it would be well worth their while to: (1) solicit feedback on the food from customers, (2) treat people to something small (e.g. a dessert) who are victims of poor service, and (3) thank people for coming. Good luck! I am rooting for you.
Raphi, best review yet. Here’s a suggestion for the restaurant owners. They should station someone at the front of the restaurant, and ask in-coming patrons if they want a table or take-out. If they want take-out, they go to the register in the back, make their order, and wait in the back. If they want a table, they’re seated immediately. Or, if there’s a wait, they are told approximately how long, and then wait in the back (to avoid crowding) or outside. The restaurant has 2-3 people handling table service, and 1 person at the register in the back handling take-out. One more suggestion – after 8 pm it should be 18+ or take-out only. That way adults can have a nice peaceful dinner.
From http://www.wickedlocal.com/brookline/fun/food/x1060491823/New-kosher-diner-seeks-to-gain-traction-among-Brookline-favorites:
Jonathan, I sure hope you were misquoted on the “better kosher supervision” part of that paragraph. Please explain what you meant.
I wasn’t misquoted. (Ed’s Note– It wasn’t a quote at all. The phrase “better kosher supervision,” was the editor’s word, not JMA’s.) Compared to the Va’ad, Rabbi Hamaoui’s supervision is more widely accepted, especially considering the Sephardi and kollel communities.
you probably should have said it that way in your “interview,” rather than “better kosher supervision.” It’s the “better” that I have an issue with. People may take it out f context or question the reliability of Rami’s Vaad supervision. People in Boston have enough crazy ideas about the Vaad and this doesn’t help. Just my 2 cents.
Saying that Rabbi Hamaoui’s supervision is “better” than the Vaad’s implies that there is something wrong with the Vaad’s rabbis and mashgichim. (Ed. note– the word “better” was the reporter’s word, not JMA’s.) By extension, it implies that there is something wrong with the observance of all the people who hold by Vaad hashgacha. Comments like that are inappropriate in private to other Jews, let alone in public a non-Jewish newspaper. More than inappropriate, such a comment violates numerous halachot.
If you’d told the reporter something more nuanced and he butchered your quote, then perhaps the onus would have been on him. But if that’s really what you said, then frankly I think you owe both the Va’ad and Rami’s a letter to the editor of the Tab clarifying that you did not mean to disaparage the Va’ad or Rami’s.
Unless, of course, you did mean to disparage the Va’ad and Rami’s.
When I spoke to Mr. Simpson, I explained in greater detail that R’ Hamaoui’s supervision was more widely accepted. I am not surprised that the Tab felt that nuances of kosher supervision are not exactly salient for an article of general consumption. This is all I’m going to say on the subject, since I do not want to perpetuate hypersensitivity about the permissibility of hashgachos — what might be right for you, may not be right for some.
thank you for the explanation.
We visited the restaurant a week ago and enjoyed the food and the great hospitality of the owners, Baruch and Rada. Its been a while since we had a really good Israeli-style food……We wish them success and all the best.
I’ve been there recently and I was generally pleased with the improvements in the service .
The Food is excellent, and the service is getting there.
I really hope they will continue to stay busy and work out all the kinks.
Best of luck
Good news everyone!
Jerusalem Pita & Grill is now accepting Visa and Mastercard!
Along with that, Jerusalem Pita is now offering a menu for catering for Shabbat, Holidays and Events!
This is great because sometimes cooking for Shabbat can get a little stressful, so all you have to do is pick up the phone. Also, can you imagine not having to cook (or at least not the whole meal) for some of the holidays? And what better food for a bar or bat mitzvah than the food at JP&G.
I will try to put up the Shabbat, holiday, and event menu sometime soon.
Thanks everyone!
We tried to eat here for dinner tonight. Unfortunately, I have to say we do not appreciate how we were treated. The place was packed with what seemed like college kids (about 25 of them taking up all of the tables but 1). We stood around and waited for a table and finally got some counter space. We waited and waited, and nobody came over. After a while, I went to where it said “order here” and the woman confirmed there was table service and said she would send someone over. Again I went back to the counter where we were sitting and waited at least 10-15 minutes. We eventually left after nobody even looked in our direction (not even to clean up the plates left by the prior customer in front of us). The waitress delivered food to the table literally right next to us many times, and could have easily said, I’ll be right with you, or I’ll get you guys some menus, or something. Anything. We’ll probably end up trying 1 more time, but I have to say this kind of service is ridiculous. You should never have to wait for menus or drinks. This keeps customers happy, and at least they have something to do while waiting for any other kind of service or food. To be honest, I would have been find just ordering food at the counter and taking it to my seat – I don’t need waitress service in a place like this. Anyway, I hope its better next time.
I’m very surprised to read these comments, and just because I dined there last night with my wife and although it was very busy, we received amazing service and the food was fantastic.
We hear that they are starting to offer cooked food for Shabbat, and we are definitely going to try it out.
We went back and had a much better experience. The food was pretty good and the service was good too. I hope it stays around!
We tried out the place again tonight and found that things ran a lot more smoothly. They had at least one waitress focused on table service and a couple of folks behind the counter. The wait for the food was a bit long but it was worth it – schnitzel was fantastic as were the sides (fries, rice, grilled veggies). Let’s hope they keep improving.
i went with my family to jersusalem pita and i quite sa this is one of the best shawarmas i ever had besides the ones in jerusalme of course i really liked the lafa alot i think its better then the one i had in israel the salds were very delicouse too the salad i ate most was the corn salad it had a great texture of garlic and even though im not that crazy about mayo the salad was amazing im definitly comin bak here on the regular bases finaly some one has opend up a resturaunt that has food that taste like back home I thank the owners and mazel tov good luck
I ate at there with my GF on a busy weeknight.
Service was delightful. We ordered Shwarma in a lafa.
The shwarma itself was tasty but the lafa was pretty bad. It was bulky, very wet , and quite clumsy. I’m Israeli so I know a good lafa…the lafa should never dominate. Instead it should support the main dish- the delicious shwarma.
Next time I’ll stick with the pita.
good luck!
Anyone been there recently? Has the service gotten better? Any updates?
I ate their for lunch recently so I can answer my own question. It was very good. In fact, just like a normal restaurant. We walked in, and a waitress greeted us and escorted us to a table. She gave us menus. We ordered. The food came, and there was a lot of it. We asked for our check. She brought it.
So the really good news is that they clearly have gotten their act together. The food was also great and plentiful. The real key is how are they doing on a Thursday or Sunday evening, when they’re extremely busy. That’ll be the big test, but for now kudos to Jerusalem Pita Cafe.
Related (sort of…) Has anyone tried the New Rochelle Kosher Subway since it reopened?
I was in the area and went there today for lunch (2/11/09) at around 2 pm. I was happy to see that the place was pretty crowded. I was in a rush to get back to work, so I asked them what they could recommend that could be prepared quickly. They gave me the shawarma, which was very good, and they really did get me out of there relatively quickly. They get an A+ for today.
i went to jerusalem pita about a month ago and the lafas dont taste as good as they used too but today the lafa was amazing i think its that tall guy in the back that makes them taste so well they shouldnt let him go on vacation ever
I was refused service for bringing in a DD iced coffee as I was getting my food as TAKE OUT!!! I get the whole kosher thing but I was trying to get my food TO GO! We are in America and you can not force your level of observation to the general public it amounts to discrimination. And when safe serve methods and food handling gloves aren’t being warn expect the Board of Health from the United States to asked to visit.
Ken – I am certainly not a expert on halacha, but I’m quite certain that the requirements of any rabbi certifying a restaurant’s kashrut MUST include that no outside food be brought into the establishment. Even if the customer is just walking in to pick up an order – both for actual kashrut and for “ma’arit ayin” (nothing looking inappropriate). And the restaurant owner must take a firm stance, making no exceptions, or risk losing the restaurant’s certification.
Next time, pick up from the kosher place before you get your coffee
Ken — think of how hard the owners work and how much money they’ve invested to make sure their establishment is kosher. Perhaps bringing in a dairy beverage wasn’t the most respectful thing to do — one spill can mean a whole lot of kashering.
it is not your level of observance that is being questioned, most kosher restaurants say you cannot bring in outside food. they cannot make an exception for you. most restaurants/supermarkets also say no shoes no service – that is not discrimimation against people who do not wear shoes.
@Ken: Let me see if I understand you correctly: they can’t force you to their level of observance, but you can force them (and by extension everybody in their restaurant) to your level of observance? And that’s your idea of what America is all about? That’s a very disturbing idea of “tolerance.”
We now deliver, you can order by contacting the restaurant or thru foodler.com