Food Hall Shuffles
New Israeli eatery launches in downtown food hall as Easy Tiger departs
A month after a mini-outpost of Italic took over the former Antonelli’s Cheese Shop space, another shuffle is happening at ELM Restaurant Group’s Fareground. On February 19, Berty Richter, the chef behind popular food truck Hummus Among Us, announced he is taking over Easy Tiger’s space with a new concept beginning on March 7.
TLV (Tel Aviv, get it?) is an Israeli street food concept in partnership with Kevin Fink, the acclaimed chef behind Emmer & Rye, Henbit, and the upcoming Hestia. The menu will expand on Hummus Among Us’ simple menu, further exploring the culinary diversity of the country.
“Israel became a home to many people and different religions from all over the world,” explains Richter in a release. “Israeli food to me is a reflection of the blend of all these cultures and cuisines that settled in Israel added to the native cuisine that, like all countries in that region, was based on the Ottoman and Persian cuisines.”
In addition to the hummus that Richter is known for, TLV will serve sandwiches like falafel and sabich, savory borek pastries, and roasted cauliflower. For dessert, the eatery will be frying up sufganiyot, filled doughnuts commonly eaten during Hanukkah.
Much of the accompanying elements to the dishes, like pickles and spice blends, will be made in-house, but the team does make a couple of concessions. High-quality tahini is being shipped in and the pita will be sourced from Israel’s Angel Bakeries.
Easy Tiger will clear out of the space on February 22. According to a separate release, the move was in part due to the eatery’s split with ELM in 2018. Going forward, the business will focus on full-scale restaurants and its wholesale business.
A limited menu of Easy Tiger pastries will still be available via the Fareground bar. The owners say there are no current plans to close the location at Whole Foods 365 in Cedar Park.