The old TV theme song teased that it was a hot dog that made Patty Duke lose control, but if I had my own theme song, the ditty would be about falafel. I'm obsessed with Israeli food, and my copy of Yotam Ottolenghi's Jerusalem cookbook is increasingly dog-eared.
Obviously, I was excited to learn that Israel-born Michael Solomonov, owner of Philadelphia's Zahav restaurant, will be in Nashville on Friday, Oct. 30, from 6 to 8 p.m. for a one-night meet, great and eat in the POP Nashville/Little Octopus space in East Nashville (604 Gallatin Ave., 615-454-3946).
Earlier this month Solomon, a James Beard Award-winning chef, published the cookbook Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking (Houghton Mifflin, Harcourt/Rux Martin Books). Copies will be offered the night of the Nashville dinner for $35 by local bookseller Parnassus Books. Solomonov will answer questions, talk Israeli eats and sign copies of the book.
Michael Solomonov and Steven Cook
When Solomonov and his co-author and business partner, Steven Cook, opened Zahav in Philadelphia in 2008, few people in the U.S. had heard much about Israeli cuisine. But that's changed. Earlier this month Esquire magazine named New Orleans' Shaya as the country's best new restaurant, and that plus the success of Zahav shows there's a demand for Israeli-style Mediterranean feasts stateside.
The night's snack and cocktail menu will include Kibbe, Grape Leaves, Bulgarian Skewers, Date Rugelach and Feta Borekas. Signature cocktails, beer and wine will be poured. The dishes will be prepared by Little Octopus Chef Daniel Herget from Zahav recipes.
"We are so fired up to do this event! This is the perfect opportunity to bring Zahav to Nashville, we've been hearing about what a great food city it is for years," Solomonov said in an e-mail.
The stop is part of Solomonov's nationwide book tour, Miami, Atlanta and Washington, D.C., are up after Music City.
Tickets are $40 and are available online.
