Passador: Where Smoke Speaks Louder Than Words

The scent reaches you before the menu does. A thick, sweet haze of oak smoke and caramelized fat drifts through the entrance of Passador, settling into your clothes and your expectations simultaneously. A waiter in a dark apron greets you with a nod, gestures toward a table set with a wooden board, a steak knife, and a small card: green on one side, red on the other. Green means go. Red means stop. This is the only decision you will need to make tonight, and even that one is harder than it sounds. Passador, perched on Yigal Alon Street in the Sarona district of Tel Aviv, is a Brazilian style churrascaria built around a single, obsessive idea: let the fire do the talking.

Chef Gaby Zylber trained in Michelin starred kitchens in Canada before returning to Israel with a clear vision. The cooking at Passador revolves around three distinct heat sources: an American charcoal grill for high, searing temperatures; a low and slow smoker for cuts that need time; and an Argentine parrilla for that particular crusty char that only open flame and iron can produce. The result is a menu of nine to ten rotating cuts, each one brought to your table on a long skewer by the passador, the house carver, who slices portions directly onto your plate.