A few years ago, when I was in high school, the ultimate activity for me and my girlfriends was to go to Tel Aviv and walk around Shenkin, which was the hottest street in Tel Aviv back then. I remember how we walked around between the special stores selling things we couldn't find in Jerusalem and never skipping pizza at ‘Agvania', which was a culinary wonder for us.
A lot changed over the last few years and Shenkin isn't what it used to be for me – the non-stop renovations there over the last few years are ruining the special atmosphere there was in the past, chain stores switched most of the small boutique stores which closed long ago and pizza at ‘Agvania' isn't the best pizza anymore in my opinion.
There's something sad about it, how a street that was considered so iconic for such a long time in Tel Aviv got so quiet despite its central location.
The boutique Shenkin Hotel in Tel Aviv is exactly what I needed to remember the better days on this street, when I dreamed of living in one of the buildings overlooking the small urban street.
When I was invited to stay at the boutique hotel in Tel Aviv called Shenkin I was a bit surprised. I don't spend as much time on that street as I used to, but i never saw a trace of a hotel on the small street. Could they have opened a new boutique hotel right under my nose without me noticing? If so, how were they able to open a boutique hotel on a street that constantly has some construction and renovations going on? After a second, I started searching for the hotel online, like I always do before booking a hotel. From the first moment Google showed me that the “Shenkin Hotel” wasn't on the mythological street but on a quiet side street ‘Brenner'… Oh! That already sounds much better. I don't know why that's the name of the hotel considering the low hype Shenkin street has now, but I'm assuming it was given as a tribute to the street's better days. A bit more browsing between the booking sites, including checking pictures and reviews about the hotel, which made me understand that it's my favorite type of hotel – central, styled and homey.
A month passed since we celebrated Daniel's birthday in Tel Aviv and I was already completely in the mood to get out of Eilat and fly to Tel Aviv…. As people who spend a lot of time traveling back and forth from Eilat to the center of the country – this month felt like forever, especially since it was packed with a ton of work… The goal of this vacation was mainly to relax and calm down at the hotel, eat good and familiar food {Pronto restaurant and Cafe Noir – both walking distance from the hotel} and to meet friends. In short, to feel like locals for a moment in a city we hope to move to the second we'll be able to 🙂
LET'S CUT TO THE CHASE – ALL THE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THE HOTEL
LOCATION
Like I wrote, the Shenkin Hotel is located on the side street, Brenner, between apartment buildings, walking distance from the main streets, Shenkin, Allenby, Nachalat Binyamin and Rothschild Boulevard. The location is ideal for anyone who wants to enjoy both worlds – the quietness and bourgeoisie along with the urban hustle and bustle with the cafes, bars and great restaurants. If you're staying at the hotel, don't miss a visit at the Rothschild-Allenby market and the Carmel market walking distance from there.
DECOR
The decor of the Shenkin Hotel is easy-going and combines the bold colors with classic furniture, without creating a messy or childish look. All of the hotel areas, from the entrance, through the lobby and the other public areas and to the rooms, combine slick cement with natural wood and they are the canvas on which original stratus are presented and colorful, interesting furniture pieces. I personally really enjoy this kind of style and I have no doubt that anyone else addicted to Instagram would love to click a few pictures of the hotel to wake their feed up 🙂
The lobby is impressive, well kept and very inviting. There's a homey and comfortable seating area with magazines and just a step away, there's an outdoor patio with a coffee corner offering hot beverages, different kinds of cookies and sometimes cake. The patio, which is bordered with a wall of thick plants, gives it a pastoral Cafe vibe, and it was my favorite place to spend the evenings while we stayed there.
The same style is continued on the hotel's rooftop which overlooks the city's urban landscape. You won't find a pool there but you'll be able to tan on one of the tanning beds spread on the deck floor.
ROOM
The Shenkin Hotel has 30 rooms divided into four categories : junior, classic, superior and studio. We stayed in the last, which is also the biggest one out of the hotel's rooms {30 square meters – and super big for an urban hotel}. This room is definitely the perfect place to run away to from the busy city and feel like home… A super pampering home if I may add.
There are a lot of things I liked about the room and some things I liked less.
I'll start with what I liked a lot – the room has three main things that make it super pampering : a king size bed with Egyptian Cotton sheets, a Nespresso machine and a huge bath with a jar of bath salt. In addition to that, the room is covered with a parquet floor {which made me remember how much I hate hotels with wall to wall carpeting!} and there are huge windows overlooking the parallel streets which let a lot of light come in and a lot of greenery. There's also a huge television, great Wi-Fi, huge and soft towels {the robes weren't as good, though}, two bottles of water and a small bottle of red wine, and a hair blow dryer that did a really good job.
Besides that, the style of the room gives a very good atmosphere that's comfy and homey without compromising on design created by a combination of eclectic furniture and yellowish decor pieces.
The bathroom, also large, is decorated with black and white tiles on the floors and white tiles on the walls giving it a clean, classic European look. The gimmicky wall that separates the bedroom from the bathroom changes with the click of a button from a transparent wall to a milky wall and gives the room a luxurious and advanced feel.
Now, let's move on to two things I liked a little less. In the small coffee corner I mentioned there's a Nespresso machine, but for some reason they didn't bother to equip it with real espresso or coffee cups, and used disposable cups instead. And I ask – if you've already invested in the machine, why be stingy on the glasses? Secondly, the bathroom, as luxurious as it was in my opinion, wasn't comfortable at all the moment I really just wanted to take a shower, even though it was also equipped with a rain shower. Though the fabric curtains there looked good, they weren't really the most aesthetic thing in the world – especially when it comes to extra long curtains that I prefer not to know what things flowed on them {if you know what I mean…}. I just preferred to take them completely out of the tub and splash water everywhere, but of course it's not the ideal situation. There's no doubt that such a luxurious bath is the room's highlight, but it would have made sense to have another solution {perhaps a separate shower stall or at least a glass partition instead of the curtain?}.
BREAKFAST
Like many boutique hotels in Tel Aviv, at the Shenkin Hotel, breakfast is served for hotel guests in a coffee shop and not in the hotel itself. In fact, the first time I came across this arrangement of an outdoor breakfast was at the Cucu Hotel and I liked the idea. Then, breakfast was served in the cafe across the street {today it's already served in the Castel Cafe that opened just under the hotel} and I didn't feel that this arrangement caused any kind of discomfort or inconvenience for the guests. I came across this arrangement again at the Polli House Hotel, but the way to the cafe was right from the inside of the hotel and felt like an inseparable part of the hotel itself. In the case of the Shenkin Hotel, I must admit that I didn't really like the concept. At Shenkin, guests are offered a choice of breakfast from 3 different cafes {Bakers Bakery, Ben Ami Bakery or LoveEat Coffee Shop}, all of which involve a walk away from the hotel, making it less pampering than I would expect from a boutique hotel.
We chose to eat at Bakers Bakery specializing in French-style pastries and even won the “Best croissant in Tel Aviv” award. The bakery is in the center of Shenkin Street and as soon as we entered it, I was sure it was going to be one of the best breakfasts in the near future. Fresh breads baked that morning and little sandwiches waiting on the shelves, fresh croissants with different fillings and a variety of sweet pastries with hypnotic scents and the desserts in the showcase looked promising. In short, everything looked perfect.
Then we got the breakfast we ordered from the hotel's special menu, and we were disappointed. I ordered the Israeli breakfast, according to the waiter's recommendation, and Daniel ordered a poached egg croissant. My breakfast was the more disappointing one of the two – a boring selection of dips, a ‘tired' salad with too much sauce and just plain bread… not really the kind you would expect in a bakery. It always amazes me how you can take something as simple as an Israeli breakfast and destroy it! After all, all that you need for a good Israeli breakfast are fresh raw ingredients and good bread, and in this sort of bakery I would expect to get small, fresh pastries in a bread basket… Daniel's meal was partially good – on one hand the croissant was excellent and so were the poached eggs that were made perfectly, on the other hand, Daniel's salad also didn't look good and just not suitable for this kind of meal, which required the accompaniment of fresh green leaves with a light dressing. Bottom line – I think it's better to go for the fresh pastries in the front of the bakery and less for the dishes coming out of the kitchen. In general, it's better for restaurants and cafes to stop serving everything and just serve the things they do best, am I right or am I right? 🙂
PRICE
The price per night at the Shenkin Hotel depends on the type of room, when you're staying there {mid-week or weekend} and of course, the season – click here to compare prices between different booking sites.
If you're looking for a boutique hotel with a homey atmosphere in the center of Tel Aviv, Shenkin Hotel is the hotel for you.
What do you think about the Shenkin Hotel? Tell me in the comments! 🙂
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Thank you to the boutique hotel in Tel Aviv - Shenkin Hotel, for a pampering and homey hospitality.
הפוסט ISRAEL : Shenkin Hotel – Feel At Home In Tel Aviv הופיע ראשון בHEDONISTIT