Taste of Home

It’s a busy Friday night in Encino and Avner Sharoni, owner of Tempo restaurant, is running behind — otherwise known as operating on Israeli time.

Bartender Shai Shoshani, who has just moved to Los Angeles, confesses that families coming to a restaurant to celebrate Shabbat rather than staying at home seems "weird."

Sharoni finally arrives, a half-hour late, wearing slippers. In his back office it’s like stepping into an Israeli dimension: the desk is disheveled, the ashtray is full and the radio’s playing.

For many Israelis, Sharoni’s restaurant is a little piece of Israel in the San Fernando Valley, a home away from home.

In 1977, Sharoni, then a 25-year-old Israeli who had moved to Los Angeles following his mandatory military service, bought Art’s International Sidewalk Cafe, a hot dog stand. Within a few weeks he added hummus and pita to the menu and changed the name to Tempo, after the popular Israeli soda. What started out as a quaint mom-and-pop stand gradually metamorphosed into a trendy restaurant.

Sharoni speaks about how common it is to meet Israelis who have moved to Los Angeles from Israel, only to return to Israel and then come back again.

"And it’s not only once or twice," he says. "Every Israeli goes through this. Their heart was there and they liked living here. They wanted to go back 15 years, to the time they lived in Israel. But this time has passed. They go back, they get a slap on the face and they lose their money. Their friends are married or they left the country. Everything changed."

And at the end of the journey, they always end up back at Tempo, where Sharoni is witness to their changing relationship with Israel. Tempo evolved to fill a void, to cater to the people looking for the Israel of their youth.

The desire for a more nostalgic atmosphere may be the reason why fans of the "old" Tempo feel a little disappointed by the restaurant’s evolution.

One such Israeli woman says she misses the old days. "It’s too crowded, there is too much noise. … Tempo represents everything I don’t like about Israel."

Sheri Neuberg, who lived in Jerusalem for 10 years, says she misses "the old feeling, when it was like an Israeli pundak (tavern). When you walk into Tempo now you’re not quite sure what you’ve walked into. I still like it and I go, but I guess good things die hard."

But Sharoni can’t ignore that time moves on, and he aims to please those looking for what once was as well as those looking for what is.

Judging by the success of the Tuesday and Thursday night entertainment, each geared toward a different audience, Sharoni has learned to walk the fine line between the generations. Thursday night caters to people looking for a nightclub, a "crazy" atmosphere with Middle Eastern music and dancing on tables.

Those who prefer a mellower style come Tuesday evenings for the weekly singalong and singles night. "When you hear the voices of the customers singing together … it’s an amazing feeling," Sharoni says, and his entire face lights up. "Everyone knows the same song, which is what is so unique about Israel. You can’t find any other place where they have a singalong on a weekly basis and where everyone knows the same songs."

Finding what people want and giving it to them has won Sharoni a regular following during the business week. "Some people come every lunch because I make them custom dishes, which they can’t miss," Sharoni says. "They’re spoiled." But from the grin on his face, you can tell that he wouldn’t have it any other way.