A new wine bar called Sideways has opened in the Ono Valley, on a street next to Sheba Medical Center, near the new Ramat Efal development. The reviewer says the setting is stark and far from Tuscan, but that contrast makes the place feel especially cool because it brings a real wine-bar atmosphere to an area that has very few places dedicated to alcohol.
The bar is small, with about eight tables inside and roughly five outside. Its metal-and-wood design is described by owner Einat Neumark as “London-style,” with a high ceiling, wine magazines at the entrance, and photos from the film Sideways, after which the place is named. The music starts with elegant jazz and shifts to calm pop-rock. The review says the location, just two meters from Kiryat Ono, gives the venue a distinctive neighborhood feel with style.
Neumark curates the wine list from about 20 importers and suppliers, creating a selection of 80 wines from Israel and abroad, mostly from classic European regions but also from Israeli boutique wineries such as Sakuria, Bezek, Eyal and Tzafririm. The menu is organized by taste profile, not by country, including fresh and mineral wines, delicate and fruity bottles, rich and powerful options, and full-bodied, complex wines. The wines by the glass change almost daily. Neumark says she only became deeply interested in wine in the past decade, after her partner introduced her to it, and later earned a WSET diploma.
Neumark previously worked as a lawyer before restaurateur Sharon Cohen of Shila and Cafe Shila recruited her to manage his restaurants, where she learned hospitality and operations. The reviewer says she now moves among guests, checks on them, gives recommendations, and makes departures feel warm and personal. The kitchen, led by Ali Stein, offers food that matches the wines, including beef tartare with toasted bread for 54 shekels, a crunchy vegetable salad with almond cream and grapes for 42 shekels, corn risotto for 62 shekels, and a chocolate cremeaux dessert for 42 shekels. Smaller items include warm bread with smoked garlic butter and green chili for 28 shekels, salted almonds and olives for 24 shekels, and a cheese plate for 74 shekels. The bar is open Monday to Thursday from 6 p.m. to midnight, Friday from noon to 4 p.m., and from Saturday night until midnight.
