Schnitt: A Tel Aviv brewpub that makes eating and drinking fun

The Schnitt Brewpub in Tel Aviv
is a fine restaurant which also
serves its own beer brewed 
on the premises.
(Photo: Mike Horton)

I got to Schnitt only four months late.  Even before this new brewpub opened in Tel Aviv, I was in touch with the owners about being among the first to visit and write about it.

One delay led to another: Weather, Covid, family, inertia.

I finally got there last month and I can report that all the glowing praise is not exaggerated. 

The place feels like a pub should.  The grub is delicious, portions are generous, and the menu offers exactly what you want with your beer.  Schnitt is a meat restaurant, but there are at least ten vegan items on the menu -- and all delicious.  I get hungry just thinking about the place!

What about the beer?

When I was there with photographer Mike Horton, there were seven in-house brewed beers on tap.

The Schnitt taplist is erasable screens
which are changing all the time.
(Photo: Mike Horton)

"We usually have more," Brewmaster Alon Schwartz told us.  "We try to keep two or three beers permanently on our beer list -- for example, and IPA and a Pale Ale -- but the other beers are constantly coming and going."

Alon has experience working with at least three other micro-breweries in Israel before starting at Schnitt nine or so months ago.  He runs a tight brewery.  Ten fermenters in a minimal space keep the new beers on the assembly line.

"We're a small brewery so we can be flexible," he explains.  "This includes having a constant rotation of new beers, which is what our customers like."

The old blogger met Brewmaster Alon Schwartz
 in his very compact and very efficient brewery.
(Photo: Mike Horton)

These are the seven beers that Mike and I tasted.  (Don't expect to find all of them when you visit.)

Hop Squad NEIPA -- semi-cloudy and mid-bitter with tastes of guava, pineapple and grapefruit. 

Intergalactic SMASH -- single hop and single malt pale ale, with delicate mango and peach flavors.

6 to Route 66 -- a fruity and spicy American Pale Ale.

Guava Island -- added fruit give this beer a taste of sweet guava and mint.

Schnitt partner Amir Neuman (left) took time
to speak with the old blogger about his
beer and business.
(Photo: Mike Horton) 

It Is What It Is -- a bready and fruity blond ale.  

End of the West -- an IPA with added orange oils; citrusy and bitter.

Avi Bitter -- an English Bitter with aromas of grass and grain.

Amir Neuman, one of the three partners of Schnitt (the others are Itai Laifer and Yoav Alon), has been in the beer and hospitality business for many years.  The opening of Schnitt, he says, has given the partners, "our own brewery, own brand and own restaurant -- something we are very proud of.

A Schnitt crowler:
You choose your beer and take
it home in a sealed can.
(Photo: Mike Horton)

"Our customers come back because there are always new beers for them to try -- but also because they appreciate the quality of our beers."

Amir is also a partner in the next-door restaurant, Porter & Sons, so there is a kind of interlocking directorate.  "But," he hastens to add, "the two restaurants are completely independent.  Porter & Sons serves very good beers, but the emphasis is on their restaurant food.  At Schnitt, our beer is in the spotlight, and the customers are a younger crowd."

A few months ago, Schnitt introduced Israel's only crowler machine.  A crowler is simply a big can that is filled with draft beer at the bar and then capped and sealed.  There are a few beer bars in Israel where you can have a bottle filled with fresh beer and capped to take home.  But Schnitt is the only place where you can can it.   

"People like the concept," adds Amir, "plus it's more aesthetic and the beer stays draft fresh longer."

The Schnitt sloth represents hand-brewed beer
 and well prepared food, eaten in a 
relaxed atmosphere.

Amir also explained Schnitt's unusual logo-mascot.  It's a sloth, an animal known for moving very slowly.  "This is not a fast-food place," Amir stresses.  "It's where you come to slow down, to enjoy your beer and your food with friends in a relaxed atmosphere.  The sloth is our symbol for that." 

I also learned that Schnitt in German means a "cut," but that it's also used when you want to order one last beer before going home, but you want less than a full glass.  You order, "Ein schnitt, bitte," and the bartender opens up the tap full blast into the bottom of your glass.  You get a lot of foam and less beer, but you also pay a lot less.    

A true feast:  Good beer and good food
-- including many vegan options --
at the Schnitt Brewpub in Tel Aviv. 
(Photo: Mike Horton)

Mike and I, who were guests of the restaurant, enjoyed our flights of beer (which were definitely not "schnitts") with a fantastic spread of pub grub.  Mike had his Alabama crispy chicken sandwich, while I dug into a mouth watering vegan sloppy joe.  All around us were vegan extras: Fried pickles, ranch fries, onion rings, and Mississippi hush puppies.  My god!  You reach a point where food-and-beer pairing becomes almost irrelevant.  Everything went well with everything.  

Speaking of which, for this month (July), Schnitt is having a special menu pairing their beers with Redefine Meat (vegan) specialties: Corn dog with American Pale Ale; Hawaiian hot dog with Blond Ale; Cheeseburger with Session IPA; Minced meat nachos with mango NEIPA; Flank steak with coffee infused White Stout.

I think I have to get back there before the month ends!

The Schnitt crew, as we met them:
Brewmaster Alon Schwartz (left), 
Marketing Director Yarden Peled, and 
partner/owner Amir Neuman.
(Photo: Mike Horton)

We highly recommend Schnitt whenever you are in the area, whenever you are in Tel Aviv, whenever you are going to Tel Aviv.  It's a perfect place for beer, food and friends. 

Schnitt has a kashrut certificate from Tzohar Food Supervision.  The restaurant is open on Shabbat, but all food ingredients are kosher and no dairy products are used.

Schnitt is located at 12 Ha'arba'a Street in Tel Aviv.  Phone number: 03-736-3070.