The most worthy buffet in the country? Nomi in Kfar Monash has cracked the code
Everyone is talking about Nomi, but nothing prepared us for what we found at the restaurant in Kfar Monash on a mid-summer Wednesday afternoon. A huge selection of pastries, sandwiches, salads, spreads, desserts, and special dishes, excellent service, a relaxed atmosphere, and everything is running flawlessly.
Imagine the following: an agricultural farm that is actually a huge garden with winding paths, among which are scattered dozens of tables of all sizes, some under trees, some hidden. There is an open structure with several levels, all the tables are filled to capacity. Both tables for 10 and picnic tables. A significant part of the crowd is sitting with laptops and working, both at one of the two high seating bars and at one of the tables on the balcony. And everyone has a stainless steel tray on the table with plates of food and drinks. The music is pleasant, there is birdsong, and despite an inconceivable amount of agile employees everywhere, everything feels calm and pleasant. Welcome to Nomi in Kfar Monash, one of the most talked-about places in the Sharon area lately.
Anyone used to generic coffee carts scattered in the Sharon and Hefer Valley settlements will be very surprised by the concept. Here there is nothing generic. The central space of the building is entirely dedicated to the buffet. Yes, like in hotels, only several levels above. It starts with a refrigerator with disposable cups containing muesli, chia pudding with fruit, or tapioca (32 NIS), alongside cold drinks like juices and infusions, as well as salads packed in takeaway containers, caprese salad (52 NIS), and black lentil salad (47 NIS).
After the refrigerator, there is a table of personal pizza-focaccias called 'Lechem Esh' (Fire Bread) (38 NIS), with potato and crème fraîche, with mushrooms and caramelized onion, with roasted tomatoes and feta, or in a margherita version. At the next buffet table, small plates await with huge slices of crispy focaccia (18 NIS); roasted cauliflower over almond cream with almond gremolata (42 NIS); roasted cabbage with plenty of onion and gremolata; a plate of spicy condiments with yogurt (25 NIS); crème fraîche with garlic confit (18 NIS); olives (10 NIS); smoked labneh with roasted peppers (18 NIS); tzatziki (18 NIS); and a basket of tomatoes (10 NIS).
At the next table, you meet the salads: Caesar (44 NIS) and cherry tomato, pine nut, and feta salad (44 NIS). Next to these are plates with fresh vegetables, some of the most beautiful I've seen, simply coarsely sliced (28 NIS), grape leaves on tzatziki (26 NIS), and campfire sweet potato with yogurt, crème fraîche, and pecans (38 NIS).
And then you reach the sandwiches. There are 5 types of sandwiches in the buffet, each in a different bread. A bun with pepperoni and Gouda (48 NIS); a bagel with avocado salad and salmon (52 NIS); brioche bread with tempura leek, chipotle aioli, tomato, and lettuce (38 NIS); a pretzel with stracciatella and vegetables (42 NIS); sesame bread with roast beef, schug aioli, and Lollo lettuce (54 NIS).
In the center of the space stands another buffet station for sweets, with a croissant with pastry cream and beautiful raspberries; pastries made from croissant dough with a variety of fillings; huge croissants; brioches; vanilla pastry cream puffs (8 NIS); huge cinnabons with cinnamon, pecan, and cream cheese (36 NIS); brownies; huge cookies; and rugelach that have more chocolate than dough.
Cracked the code. Everything is big, beautiful, fresh, and delicious. Everything we loaded from the buffet aroused admiration. Not only were the dishes themselves excellent, but the ingredients were of the best quality. The service is also high-quality, fast, and pleasant. It was also comfortable to find a place to sit, to find cutlery, and to pack leftovers at the central station for takeaway packaging. Despite the heat and the heavy load of visitors, it was really delicious and fun. Together with a granita slushy coffee, we paid 370 NIS and left with a huge meal of 10 dishes for 3 people. Nomi started as a chef restaurant, turned into a bakery at the beginning of the war, and has now grown into a buffet powerhouse that every restaurateur should learn from. When it is difficult to recruit staff and meet costs, they found creative solutions. It is unbelievable how affordable it is for customers too. Everything is ticking like a clock. You simply don't argue with success.
In Waze: Nomi. Kfar Monash. Sunday-Saturday 08:00-15:00 (or until stock runs out). Not kosher.
