Grapevine: Hummus coming to Hillel Street

By GREER FAY CASHMAN
Cafe Hillel (photo credit: Courtesy)
Cafe Hillel
(photo credit: Courtesy)
THE PREMISES of the original Café Hillel, opened in 1998 by Kobi and Yossi Sherf, who called what was then a fledgling enterprise after the street on which it was located, has been vacant for many months now. But this is about to change: A large sign over the window informs passers-by that Hummus Hillel will soon open there. Alongside it is another sign that states that Dani Ful is moving up from the Jaffa Flea Market to Hummus Hillel. Ful is not Dani’s surname, but the name of a popular Middle Eastern bean dish.
Dani Ful in Jaffa is typical of an industrial zone eatery. Whether it will become a little more upmarket, with a more varied menu, once it branches out into Jerusalem remains to be seen. It is one of the most veteran establishments of its kind in Jaffa, and according to reviews, serves the best hummus in town. There are several restaurants in Jerusalem that serve excellent humous, but a little extra competition can only help to make life more palatable for diners.
THERE ARE no hard-and-fast rules about going into labor. Some women who get labor pains sometimes wait for so long to deliver their babies that doctors might suggest a C-section. At the opposite end of the spectrum are mothers who give birth within a very short time of their water breaking. Shira Dayan of Beitar Illit is in the latter category.
Her husband, Israel, was not at home when she went into labor. At around10.30 p.m., the expectant mother telephoned Magen David Adom to ask for help with what appeared would be a home delivery.
The first person on the scene was on-call MDA paramedic Mendy Cohen, who happens to live in an adjacent building. There was also an ambulance on the way, but when Cohen entered the apartment, he saw that Dayan was already in an advanced stage of giving birth and there would be no way of getting her to hospital before the arrival of her baby. Minutes later, Cohen helped deliver a boy weighing 2.067 kilograms. But that wasn’t the end of the story. Dayan was pregnant with twins, and the baby boy’s sister, just a fraction heavier, was also in a hurry to get into the world, making her entry slightly after the arrival of the ambulance in which MDA’s Meni Sheetrit and Moshe Benita came just in time to help with the delivery. For Cohen, who has helped with some 30 deliveries to date, this was the first birth of twins. Israel Dayan, who had been summoned home, saw the twins on the bed as he entered the bedroom. He went into momentary shock, which quickly transformed itself into joy. All three MDA representatives were thrilled, and it was a great evening for all, despite the fact that the bedroom was a little crowded.
FOR MANY years now, the Hazvi Yisrael Congregation in Talbiya has been urging its elected officials to install a Shabbat elevator, which has become an increasing necessity for aging congregants who find it difficult to climb stairs. Given the architectural design of the building, it would be very difficult to place an elevator inside. After a lot of wheeling and dealing with the municipality, permission was finally granted, and the synagogue’s president, Dr. Kenneth Collins, notified congregants that the final surveys had been taken and the permits granted.
There’s just one fly in the ointment – the cost. The estimate is that the project will cost somewhere in the range of NIS 600,000, which is almost the price of an apartment in a peripheral area. Collins is hopeful that the elevator will be installed by the middle of next year, and notes that the initial work has been made possible by generous congregants who have donated sufficient contributions to support the 25 percent deposit that has to be paid before work can begin. However, some congregants believe the price is far too high, among them the influential Stuart Dove, a former president of the congregation and an accountant.
Whether his objections will result in holding up the project or bring the costs down remains to be seen.
THE JERUSALEM branch of ESRA, the English Speaking Residents Association, has announced that its popular series of lectures on Israeli literature by Dr. Rachel Korazim will re-commence on Tuesday December 1. There will be at least six lectures in the series, with meetings hosted in private homes. Anyone wanting to attend should send an email to susan.schneider17@gmail.com or DinaRaveh@gmail.com, who will relay information about the venues. The participation fee is NIS 50 for members and NIS 60 for non-members. Proceeds are earmarked for the Beit Hatzayar School for Youth at Risk.