This is breakfast, yes, but also a wake-up service

Rothschild Boulevard is still not awake on Friday morning, but the terrace of Café 65 is already happening, pouring itself into the city while keeping a reasonable, sane distance. From here, one level above the street, the ideal relationship is formed between couples who love to wake up at their own pace, and the optimal definition of a natural awakening is formulated.

It’s brunch, yes, but also an alarm clock. Before it rings gently, there is only silence; after it, the weekend.

Many years in this exact location have created an understanding of what is right and what is sought on this breakfast table. Colors and flavors are obvious, and obviously someone, at some point, will utter the word “abundance.” Here, however, it is also clear that it can be a little more refined than usual, and one can dream of Europe too. Small-short dreams, cut off by our reality, of course, but still allowed.

The starting point was high, and credit to the Atlas Hotels team can easily be given for the fact that it didn’t need much to capture attention even nowadays. There was COVID, and the war is still here, so the audience has changed, and enjoyment is noticeable among the guests depending on the thing, so they still decided to tighten slightly and improve a bit, offering more without giving up on what already exists.

You know, everyone would simply stay in place and be satisfied with what they have. Here, however, they went back on the road again.

This path still includes a wonderful core of spreads and colorful vegetables, bread and bagels and airy focaccia, good salads and strong-flavored cheeses, pickled fish with a salty kick, natural juices and successful coffee, and the familiar alcohol station – only in this chain, for some reason, and it’s unclear how this story has not yet been copied to every breakfast anywhere – which fortified cava with Aperol and arak, for day starters and smile starters.

All of this, including the wonderful sabich corner in itself (small warm pitas with eggplant and egg waiting to be stretched and burst with possibilities and personal whims), received additional excellent additions such as a tray of water borekas filled with cheese (next to a hard-boiled egg, spicy, crushed tomatoes, and pickles), and small creative plates with fried artichoke, for example, beetroot and cashew cream, egg salad bruschetta, baked kohlrabi with yuzu, or roasted peppers studded with feta cheese.

The mains range from the obvious – eggs, of course – to inherently indulgent (croissant toast with gouda and almond butter or eggs Benedict on challah), from a pan of green shakshuka and tangy yogurt waiting patiently to be dipped, to a “schnitzel egg” dish on brioche with mushroom ragu.

Then come the sweets, and there will also be French toast with caramelized pear and whipped cream, more coffee, and probably another morning cocktail. It will come, it most certainly will.

Even in a field bursting with possibilities, and in a city that worships its brunch, there is something very impressive about the character of the 65ers, hotel and café alike. Without fireworks that raise empty promises into the air and without any need for overly deep shakes, a tradition has long been established, and institution upon institution.

True, it may be a bit mature and certainly lacks the adventurous spark that attracts trend audiences from place to place, but the audience that knows, knows how to arrive and knows how to return. Midweek (NIS 130) and at the end of the week (NIS 155), it’s hard to find a better deal for this type of event, and this type of treat. Factor in the location and add another independent cocktail, close the corner, and this comparison becomes even better. Come on, the clock has rung.