Chef Tochal goes kosher

Another installment of the popular Chef Tochal (Chef Eats) festival gets under way again this week.

By LINDA LIPSCHITZ
Another installment of the popular Chef Tochal (Chef Eats) festival, in which upscale restaurants offer a three-course meal for an enticing fixed price of NIS 79, gets under way again this week, starting Sunday, March 30, and running through April 10. This year is the first time it is an all-kosher affair, and participating restaurants are from Netanya in the North to Ashkelon in the South. Still under the auspices of Peh Echad, a company specializing in services to eateries, many more restaurants have joined the festivities due to the success of the event. As Chef Guy Peretz of Rishon Lezion's Oro says, "My restaurants really don't make much of a profit at NIS 79 for a three-course meal. But, people who have never eaten Moroccan food come, discover, enjoy and return. It is an excellent way to get our restaurants known." After all, this is the point of the festival, the exploration of new cuisine as much as revisiting old favorites. So, go sample something Asian or Moroccan or anything else that you're palate desires.