Reviewed: April 2002 revised January 2006
Location and ambiance
Le Relais is located in the courtyard of the Noga theater in Jaffa, which is at the border of Tel-Aviv/Jaffa. Parking is available in a small lot right next to the restaurant, at 3 Shalma St. just before the turn to Yerushalayim Street. You can see the restaurant awnings from Shalma St.

The building housing Le Relais dates back to the 1930's and is a classic example of architecture from the British period. The main room has high arched ceilings with Casablanca ceiling fans and beautiful arched windows, giving you a very nice spacious feeling.

The decor is French Moroccan, with carpets, unique lighting fixtures, imported furniture, and designer vases. The glowing candles and fresh flowers all contribute to the truly beautiful and enjoyable ambiance of Le Relais Jaffa.

Seating is either in the main dining area on the street level (handicapped friendly) or in a cozy room one flight up. The upstairs room is used for parties of up to 35 people or professional dinner meetings. Larger parties for up to 100 people can be held in a decorative stylized tent in the restaurant's outdoor courtyard. Several well know celebrities have had their wedding receptions in the courtyard of Le Relais Jaffa. A second private room is also being prepared for smachot, that will seat 40 people.

See more on making a simcha at Le Relais Jaffa.

About us...
Le Relais is the brainchild of David and Chani Bitton, both professional restaurateurs. David and his family are the proprietors of the famous Fantasy restaurant, a well-known landmark in Marrakech, Morocco.

Chani is the soul of Le Relais Jaffa. She will greet you at the door with her smiling face and warm hospitality. When you dine at this restaurant you are her personal guest. The Chani and David husband and wife team are an unbeatable combo.

Le Relais is not just a place to eat. It is an elegant evening out. This is a good place to go to celebrate a special occasion or to just enjoy a delightful evening. It is an up market restaurant and one of the finest in Tel-Aviv.

Menu
Le Relais specializes in fine quality French cuisine. My companion and I visited this restaurant again, after far too long a lapse. You must visit this restaurant often, because it is always renewing itself with new dishes and creative ideas.

Dinner at Le Relais Jaffa is an evening of culinary entertainment. Take your time and enjoy your company. Take in the ambiance and savor the beautifully presented and delicious foods. This is the joy of dining in a luxurious restaurant. You will not regret it. Le Relais is a definite glass-of-wine restaurant. When ordering wine by the glass, each diner can enjoy the wine that they prefer.

Dinner begins with Tapenade, an olive spread, and garlic "butter" served with fresh-from-the-oven rolls. We then enjoyed a three course meal. My companion was very pleased with the appetizer Tarte Provencale with Couantrau Sauce (NIS 39). This is served either with or without goose liver, as you request. It comes with baked tomatoes that are cooked in Cointreau. I usually prefer a vegetable appetizer when I am planning a fish or meat main dish. I thoroughly enjoyed the Millefeuille with Mushroom in Basil appetizer which was fresh mushrooms served on pastry dough together with delicately spiced lettuce. Chani was kind enough to give me the recipe, but you have to be a chef to get this one right.

For a main dish I chose the Salmon Fillet in Soumace and Wine. This was a lovely dish of salmon fillet served with a ginger sauce, potatoes and sauteed vegetables. I must say that the vegetable dishes at this restaurant are exquisite. If you favor vegetables, or if you are vegetarian, you will appreciate a meat restaurant where the vegetables are an art.

My companion was quite satisfied with his Entrecote steak in Pepper Sauce (NIS 89). The pepper sauce was mild, but he added fresh pepper from a mill. Next time, he decided, he will try the Entrecote steak with the mustard sauce.

We topped off our meal with a selection from the sweet desserts menu recited to us by our courteous waiter. We shared a delicious black and white cake with an orange cream sauce and a chocolate covered tarte filled with vanilla ice cream. This, with a nice cup of tea, was a great way to round out the meal. A good time was had by all, in this very delightful restaurant.

Customer Comment:
Submitted By: Yakov Kaufman. Date: June 2002. Description: We were the first ones to arrive last evening and arrived pretty hungry from a walk on the Tel-Aviv boardwalk. We found the restaurant and the ambiance very pleasant. The service was exceptionaly nice. We started with the "crazy salad" which wasn't all that crazy, practically a regular salad with a few bits of meat on it. My wife continued with the goose liver which was VERY tasty, although it's a good thing she ordered it and not me, being that the portion was a bit small. I had the lamb chops which for a change (in Israel) was actualy a decent size portion and was excellent. For desert I had the Mango sorbet, which wasn't exceptional but pretty good and my wife had the chocolate cake with english vanila cream which again was very tasty. All in all a very pleasant evening (especially for Jerusalemites).