Oscar Bistro & Bar

March 2024
Oscar Bistro & Bar in Holon has undergone a transformation. For 10 years Oscar was part of the world-wide chain of Oscar Wilde bars. The bar still remains, but a full food menu has been added to the repertoire.

Oscar is now a restaurant where friends - kosher and non-kosher - can get together and share a good time. The good time is not just about alcohol, but it is about food as well. At the new Oscar Bistro Bar friends can "break bread" together. You can loosen up with a cocktail, share good food and improve your mood with extraordinary beer and wine.

You can take a restaurant out of a bar, but you can't take the bar out of the restaurant. Though they have added a full menu, the atmosphere of the bar remains. The large glistening square bar dominates the center of the dining area. The Irish shamrock hangs on either side of the bar - despite the relationship between Israel and Ireland. The room is dark, as you would expect in a bar, with dim individual lights on each table.

The new Oscar Bistro offers a one-page menu of meat, fish and vegetarian dishes. Open as a restaurant for only a few months, they are still working out their menu. We were advised on our choices based on, I think, the tried-and-true dishes that will remain on the menu.

This is a "sharing" restaurant. Individual plates, silverware and napkins are stacked at one end of the table and courses to be shared are delivered to the center of the table. The dining is not just about eating, but about sharing the experience.

We opened our meal with the starter dips, called "Open table" in the menu. This is a very attractive course of of dips and a mix of green and black olives. The dips were served with warm bread, always welcome. Sharing the various dips is a good way to start the sharing-concept meal. My favorite was the smooth and creamy eggplant dip, a change from the standard grilled whole eggplant. The Morrocan-style creamed carrot dip and the burnt vegetable dip, and certainly the grilled hot pepper were a bit spicy for my palette, but my companion took the lead and enjoyed them very much.


My companion had considered the wings for his appetizer, but Revital, who manages the restaurant, suggested the Tataki Sinta (sirloin) beef starter instead. This plate of thinly sliced marinated and seared steak is served on a creamy polenta sauce and topped with just a bit of Pico de Gallo, a Mexican salsa and fresh cilantro. He found the meat soft and tender, and very tasty.

The endive salad was also recommended. This is a green salad of Salnova lettuce, Romaine lettuce, and of course endive leaves, but what gives it a pleasant flavor and texture are the cherry tomatoes and wedges of apple in a balsamic vinegar dressing. Caramelized nuts woven through the salad give it a sweet taste and great crunch.

The Oscar people know their alcohol. After all, in a previous life Oscar was a bar!
A visit to the restaurant is an opportunity to enjoy cocktails, beer and wine not often seen in other restaurants. Revital was pleased to take the time to educate us about the different beers and booze.

At Oscar you will find drinks from companies that are a bit off the grid. The restaurant bar has a large number of beers from different breweries. With his meal my companion had an IPA (Indian pale ale) beer, which is unusual in Israel. The beer gets its unique flavor from the extra hops added to the beer that gives it a slightly bitter taste. Other beers were the Chouffe beer, a cherry flavored Belgian-style brown strong fruit ale. The Luma unfiltered beer from Carlsberg is made exclusively for the Israeli market. Revital can tell you all about this.

With our meal we had a Captain Jack, a rum-based fruity cocktail which was both beautiful to the eye and delicious. I am partial to rum drinks, and this was a very good one. With two straws, we slurped it up with glee.

In addition to the cocktails and the beer the restaurant has an extensive wine list. Five-stones is a Jerusalem boutique winery. The restaurant carries their white wine, rose, and the Nobility wines, not commonly found in other restaurants. Most of the wines are not Mevushal high end wines so they are sold by the bottle - Rabbanut requirement. Unorthodox wine, imported from South Africa, is Mevushal and can be purchased by the glass.

For our main courses we shared the salmon fillet on string beans and a bed of creamy corn spread. The salmon was nicely prepared, with the crispy skin side up, and enhanced by the cream. The Jerusalem artichoke, a vegetarian dish, was leathery on the outside with a potato-like texture on the inside. It was served on a cream of Jerusalem artichoke and thin chips of fried, you guessed it, Jerusalem artichoke.

At the bottom of the menu the restaurant lists three high end meat dishes: sinta steak, sirloin steak and slow-cooked asado on the bone. These choices are printed on a dark background, and in the darkened room I did not even notice them on the menu.

Location: Oscar Bistro restaurant is located in the courtyard of the Azrieli towers in Holon. Tall office buildings surround the courtyard and there is plenty of underground parking. Oscar Bistro has a prime corner spot in the courtyard, with its glass walls facing two sides of the courtyard. The Deal: The restaurant offers a 25% discount on the entire menu on Sundays. Other days Oscar honors the eLuna 10% discount on the full menu.

Note: Oscar Wilde Bar in Petach Tikva is not related to this restaurant. It is also not kosher, so if you have mistakenly found yourself at this location, you are in the wrong place.

From the Menu
Opener: salads NIS 48
Jerusalem Artichoke NIS 68
Tatakin Sinta NIS 66
Endive Salad NIS 59
Salmon fillet NIS 88
Cocktail