Mashya's Brunch Buffet

I’ve heard so much about Mashya’s fine dining experience, but although I didn’t have the pleasure of dining there for dinner, I’ve been to their breakfast buffet twice. Here’s a breakdown of my experience:

The location and ambiance were buzzing with life on the weekends I went to, and I liked that, even though I felt somewhat out of place as a South Tel Aviv rat infiltrating the richer crowds of North Tel Aviv. Everyone seemed to have this stress free look on their face—almost everyone was dressed as though their parents had money, or their paycheck was over 25,000 shekels a month. This could be, and possibly is, my own bias, as someone who less frequently visits the northern parts of Tel Aviv.

To enjoy the brunch experience, each person must pay around 150 shekels. This includes the buffet, a cold drink, a hot drink, and one dish from their main brunch menu. If you choose a non-egg dish like waffles, you have to pay extra. I don’t understand this to be honest, it feels like a rip-off given how much you pay for this experience. You also pay extra for alcohol, which is more understandable, but I thought a complimentary small glass of cava should be included, especially considering the limited and dull food options (which I’ll elaborate on below).

The first time I went to Mashya, I sat inside, far from the buffet. The second time, I sat right in front of the dessert section, which turned out to be an annoying experience with people constantly sneaking up behind you to grab desserts.

Now, let’s talk about the food! The buffet both times was very basic and consisted of the same things, 2 or 3 types of cheeses, 2 or 3 types of meat (mostly pork, and one beef), and a very small selection of dips and salads.

They had a simple mozzarella and tomato salad that was good, but it wasn’t renewed frequently, so I mostly ended up with tomatoes and some disappearing pieces of cheese. There was also a lettuce salad that lacked flavour, with only the top layer of leaves having any dressing. If they were supposed to emulate a Caesar salad, that would be very sad. The steamed broccoli was just boring and flavourless.

Overall, there wasn’t much flavour or variety in the buffet.

The bread selection was underwhelming and not varied, I’ve had better bread from mediocre bakeries. You’d think a place like Mashya would make better bread, or at least do what any good restaurant would do: get it from Hagay Bakery.

The first time I went, they had both plain croissants and pain au chocolat. The second time, they only had the plain croissants. Given the limited bakery options, that was quite disappointing. They tasted like average hotel croissants.

As for the main dishes I tried: the eggs benedict, avocado egg toast, and omelette.

The omelette was boring and didn’t justify the expensive experience. They ask you what vegetable additions you want, and they serve it plain with just a sour cream dip.

The eggs benedict, however, was great. It comes in a lovely brioche cube, tastes delicious, and feels decadent.

My favorite dish on my first visit was the avocado egg toast. It comes on rye bread with a poached egg on top. The bread is grilled in the oven with oil, which makes it crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. It was delicious. Unfortunately, the second time I ordered it, the bread was soggy and lacked flavor. It was very disappointing.

The desserts included crack pie, cheesecake, and orange cake.

The crack pie was possibly the worst I’ve ever had. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t terrible, but it didn’t live up to restaurant standards. It was just too sugary, not buttery enough, and the crunchy layer underneath was more soggy than crispy. 

The cheesecake was good, but not special. The orange cake had a few bitter notes, but it was my favorite of the three.

On my second visit, I was served fake orange juice. I expected freshly squeezed natural juice, and that was disappointing.

It’s worth mentioning that the staff is amazing and super friendly. Unlike some cafes and bars in Tel Aviv, where you feel uncool and as though you’ve bothered the waiter by ordering, the service at Mashya felt more welcoming.

Overall, Mashya’s brunch buffet seems more like a status experience than a culinary one. I’ve had better food at places like Benedict, with better tasting dishes and more value for your shmekel. I know I shouldn’t compare the highend Mashya to Benedict, given Mashya’s reputation for fine dining and its brunch prices, but here we are, and I think that says a lot.

The food wasn’t terrible, and the main breakfast dishes were decent in parts, but is it worth 150 shekels? Absolutely not. I would recommend finding another buffet with more selection and similarly mediocre or slightly better dishes for the same price, or even less.

P.S. Both times I went, I used a gift voucher, allowing me to eat for free. In this case the brunch was worth it, haha.