Temptation in the Sticks

Savory spinach pastry and dips

Place: Maklot Vanille, Afula

When: Sunday morning

Environment: My first visit to this spot was during wartime, so it is hard to say what it’s normally like. But considering that I was there during war and missiles could have fallen at any moment, it was fairly busy, with tables of couples and even families, and more people arriving the whole time. The café-patisserie is located in an industrial area (though it will be moving locations soon), so it’s not exactly fancy. But there is plentiful seating at matching tables of laminated wood with muted colored stripes, and gray-backed chairs. The entire place is walled by windows. At the entrance is a vitrine of beautiful pastries, and the takeout business is strong too. The place also makes its own ice cream and offers about a dozen flavors. The service was super friendly and prompt.

My Order: Savory spinach pastry (NIS 30); personal-size lemon pie (NIS 45); regular cappuccino (NIS 15).

Personal lemon pie

The low-down: My elongated, crisped pastry filled with spinach and cheese was served with a tomato salsa, schug, and some cream cheese on the side. While I expected more of a bourekas vibe, it was actually more of a savory croissant, with various seeds on top. It was warm, buttery, and flaky, with a creamy, salty filling. The not-very-spicy schug added a very fresh flavor, as did the tomatoes. Choosing a dessert from the display case was very, very hard. Everything looked and sounded wonderful. In the end, I went with a classic lemon pie. It was served on what basically amounts to a platform or inverted black plate. The crust was firm, flaky and sweet. The filling was lemony and light. The topping had a meringue quality to it, but wasn’t meringue. And my coffee was actually coffee-flavored, rather than washed out and milky. It was quite a pleasant surprise. Even the little brownie that was served alongside the coffee was rich and chocolatey and soft in the middle. It’s unusual to find a place that does well on sweets, savories, and coffee, and unexpected to find that place in an industrial zone in the Jezreel Valley.

Who else was there: A man in a khaki-colored jacket, light blue shirt, black pants, and black running shoes was sitting alone. He ordered a big breakfast of shakshuka, juice, and hot cider. It looked like he hadn’t shaved in a few days, and he looked tired. He sat nervously bouncing his leg, making phone calls. He was in a car crash a few days ago, and he was trying to figure out how to get the vehicle fixed. He didn’t have the money at this point, because work is slow during war. But he needs the car for work. It’s a Catch-22. So he’s talking to whoever he can, asking garages what arrangements can be made. And trying to stall work jobs until he can get to them, before they turn to someone else. At least he could enjoy a good breakfast while he stressed.