Cicchetti

Cicchetti, Tel Aviv: Quick Verdict

The name will set the wrong expectation if you arrive thinking you are walking into a Venetian bacaro. Cicchetti on Yehuda ha-Levi Street is a Tel Aviv address with its own identity — the Italian reference in the name is a framing device, not a menu commitment. If you are searching for a small-plates, counter-friendly dining format in this part of the city, the room deserves a closer look. If you need confirmed hours, a published menu, or a phone number before booking, you will need to verify those directly, as that data is not publicly consolidated.

What to Expect

Yehuda ha-Levi is one of those Tel Aviv streets that rewards walking slowly. The address at number 58 puts you in a part of the city where the dining scene rewards curiosity over planning — which suits the cicchetti format well. That format, borrowed from the Veneto tradition of small, shareable bites consumed standing or perched at a counter, translates naturally to Tel Aviv's social eating culture. Counter seating, where available, is worth requesting: it tends to compress the distance between the kitchen and the guest, and in a venue at this scale that proximity changes the pace of the meal in a way that table seating rarely does.

For the food-oriented traveller who reads menus the way other people read maps, a counter seat here functions as an editorial vantage point. You see what is being prepared, you can ask questions without flagging down a server, and the meal becomes a conversation rather than a transaction. Compare that experience to the more theatrical, large-room energy of HaSalon, where the production is part of the point, or the market-driven precision of Habasta, which rewards diners who want to know where every ingredient came from. Cicchetti sits in a different register , more compact, more informal, with a pace set by the room rather than a tasting menu clock.

Booking is rated easy, which is a practical advantage in a city where demand at well-regarded addresses can compress availability quickly. That said, walk-in viability and reservation platforms should be confirmed before you go, as hours and booking methods are not currently published in a consolidated source. For comparison, Ha'Achim and Dr. Shakshuka both operate with more transparent booking infrastructure, which may matter if you are coordinating a group or working around a tight itinerary.

Tel Aviv's dining scene rewards planning across neighbourhoods as much as within them. If Cicchetti is your anchor for the evening, the surrounding area connects well to the broader city , and for those spending more time in Israel, comparable counter-forward or small-plates experiences are worth tracking in other cities: Chakra in Jerusalem and Uri Buri in Acre both reward the same kind of exploratory, depth-first approach to eating. For a fuller picture of where Cicchetti sits within the Tel Aviv dining conversation, see our full Tel Aviv restaurants guide.

Who Should Book

This is the right room for a food traveller who wants an informal, counter-adjacent meal in a part of the city that does not announce itself loudly. It is less suited to large groups expecting a structured evening, or to diners who need confirmed tasting menus and wine lists before committing. If the small-plates format appeals and you are comfortable with some discovery on arrival, Cicchetti is worth the easy booking effort. If you need more operational certainty upfront, Habasta or Alena at The Norman offer more pre-visit transparency.

For broader Tel Aviv planning, our Tel Aviv hotels guide, bars guide, and experiences guide are useful companions. Further afield in the region, Abu Hassan in Jaffa and Azura represent the kind of no-frills, high-conviction eating that shares some of the same spirit as a well-run cicchetti counter.