Agrippas Street and 24 Beit Hadfus Street, supermarkets across the city Ugat Chen: B+This bakery stand in the heart of the shuk always has crowds around it, and now I know why. Its tall loaf of halla was exceptionally soft inside and dotted with sesame seeds. While it had one of the best textures of the loaves I tasted, it was lacking in salt and was better with a sweet or savory topping than plain. The loaf was still extremely soft three days later. NIS 8On the main uncovered street of Mahaneh Yehuda Angel: B+Hallot from Angel are probably some of the most ubiquitous in this country, since you can buy them not only at the company’s chain of stores but also in supermarkets nationwide. Angel’s loaf was classically “halla,” with a braided shape and sesame seed topping, a tougher crust and softer inside. It had a good balance of sweet and salty that was missing in many loaves, but it went stale pretty quickly. Angel also sells semi-sweet hallot, rye hallot and other varieties. NIS 12.50 for one or NIS 14 for two, with varying prices at resellers Over a dozen locations in Jerusalem, including at many supermarkets and stands
Marzipan: B+ This little bakery – now expanded to three locations – is known more for its pastries than its bread. But like every operation in town, it offers a wide variety of halla loaves, egg-and-water halla, round and braided and even crown-shaped. In not too much of a surprise, the halla was a touch on the sweet side, more suited for French toast (in which it performed admirably) than dipping in humous. NIS 10 5 Rahel Imeinu Street, 14 Agrippas Street, and 17 Tiferet Israel Street Nechama: B+Nechama’s bakeries sell sesame hallot, poppy hallot, sweet hallot and water hallot – about any variety you can imagine. Their classic loaf was soft inside with a somewhat chewier crust, and a touch sweeter than it was salty. It was still fresh-tasting on day three. NIS 95 Tzeret Street, 5 Yehezkel Street, 3 Sonnenfeld Street, and 31 Kanfei Nesharim StreetEnglish Cake: B+Halla from the English Cake chain of bakeries was very soft, with a good flavor but almost nonexistent crust. The bread was a little “crumby,” leaving something of a mess on the table. The store sells poppy, sesame, wholegrain and sweeter varieties of halla. NIS 11Six locations in JerusalemTeller: BThis store, known best for its wide selection of quality breads, didn’t quite deliver on the halla front. Teller’s loaf of halla had a solid crust dotted with sesame seeds, but really no flavor at all to its bready inside – sugar or salt would have been a welcome addition. Still, it was still fairly fresh several days after purchase. NIS 12 74 Agrippas Street and a stand inside Mahaneh YehudaNe’eman: B Ne’eman’s classic halla loaf was chewier and doughier than most, and slightly undersalted. My fellow taste testers enjoyed the whimsy of the store’s half-poppy, half-sesame loaf, though it didn’t have much of a crust on it; rather, it was just soft inside and out. NIS 7A dozen locations in JerusalemPe’er: BCalling itself Jerusalem’s oldest bakery, Magdaniat Pe’er has branched out from its original storefront in the German Colony to include not one, but two stands inside Mahaneh Yehuda. Pe’er’s loaf of halla had a good, balanced taste, with both sweet and salty flavors, but was a bit heavy in texture. It also went stale more quickly than most other loaves. NIS 11
5 Hamagid Street and two stands inside Mahaneh Yehuda