Tastes on the town

It’s an upcoming week of food-art or food accompanying art. Hard to say whether this is a new trend, or just a natural marriage. But for now, it’s creating a selection of five events to easily satisfy body and soul.

1) Food and culture collide at “Shanaba’a,” an event celebrating the upcoming new year on Emek Refaim in Jerusalem’s German Colony neighborhood, with street performers, local bands hosted by the pluralistic and spiritual Salon Shabazi, a jam session in the yard of the Adam School, family events at the Beit Yehudit (formerly known as the ICCY) and an array of food purveyors offering beverages, snacks, sandwiches and the like for hungry participants making their way along the avenue. Monday, September 10, 5:30 p.m. – 11 p.m., Emek Refaim, Germany Colony, Jerusalem. Be warned: Surrounding streets will be closed as of 2 p.m.

2) A short but colorful exhibit begins Monday and runs through Wednesday, as 35 chefs, food stylists and one photographer produce COLORFOOD, a show at the Jaffa port. Photographer Dan Lev shot the meals, provided “outside the plate” by some of Israel’s most talented chefs, who had only one proviso: to design their culinary creations according to one color only. Including meals created by chefs Yisrael Aharoni, Avi Bitton, Ruth Sirkis, Nitzan Raz, Nir Zuk and many others, it was a test of patience and endurance, says Lev, adding that it was fascinating to see which colors and tastes inspired each chef. Monday, September 10 – Wednesday, September 12, Hangar 2, Jaffa port, Tel Aviv.

3) Monday also brings the opening of the Beer Art exhibit, which is more about ecology than food or beer, focusing on what can be done with garbage — including glass, pottery shards, shutters, bicycle parts and cans — before it’s disposed of in a bin or dump. Held at the Dancing Camel Bar in Tel Aviv, the show displays the work of five artists. And you can drink some fine brews while perusing the pieces. Monday, September 10, 8 p.m., Dancing Camel Bar, 12 HaTaasiya, Tel Aviv.

4) Thursday brings the second Tel Aviv Slideluck Potshow, a meeting of community, food and art at the Namal, the northern port in Tel Aviv. The local version of what has become an international event, it feature 20 multimedia works of known and unknown artists, beginning with a potluck dinner of sorts, in which participants bring their meal to share with others. The concept started in New York, where a group of people wanted to strengthen and build community, and has now spread to some 50 cities worldwide. Think of it as Eat Wall Street. The Tel Aviv evening will include presentations from artists Ron Arad and Spencer Tunick, featuring their recent works at the Israel Museum and Dead Sea, and will culminate in a party with beer and food tastings from several port restaurants. Thursday, September 13, 7:00 p.m. – 12:00 p.m., Hangar 11, Namal Tel Aviv.

5) There’s been Diner en Blanc (dinner in white) in Paris, where it originated in 1988, and then in New York, Singapore, Toronto, Vancouver, Philadelphia and dozens of other cities worldwide. Now it might be coming to Israel. The concept is a summer evening pop-up picnic, in which all participants wear white; schlep their own tables, white tablecloths, tableware and meal; and dine together, but separately. You never know where it’s going to be, so diners gather at a predetermined spot beforehand, in a kind of elegant flashmob for adults. There hasn’t been one in Israel yet, but word is it may be happening soon. So keep your whites at the ready.