Haim Etgar Opens Up About Growing Up Poor and His Childhood Without Cooked Food
Popular Israeli TV host Haim Etgar opened up in a Channel 12 interview about his impoverished childhood, sharing memories of lacking cooked food and eating twenty schnitzels at a friend's house.
Haim Etgar, one of Israel's most beloved and recognizable television hosts, has opened his heart in an unprecedented manner. In an emotional interview broadcast on Channel 12, Etgar candidly revealed his painful experiences growing up in a family facing severe economic hardship, focusing particularly on the absence of warm, cooked food at home.
"There was no food at home," Etgar shared with pain. "My childhood was pita bread and hummus, and no one took care of it." He described a defining moment when he visited his best friend's house for the first time. "I opened the refrigerator, and there were schnitzels... something like twenty to thirty schnitzels. I devoured everything. His mother hasn't forgiven me for it to this day."
For Etgar, this experience left a deep imprint on his memory and continues to influence his relationship with food as an adult. "To this day, my wife makes schnitzels, and she doesn't understand how I finish twenty in one go," he added with a half-smile. "But a meal and a home... that was a whole world to me. You have a home. Cooked food is an amazing thing." The revealing interview generated widespread resonance online, offering a rare glimpse into the host's complex childhood.
