There's trendy and then there's trendy. While almost all of the restaurants among the tree-shaded Templar and Arab buildings of Emek Refaim Street in the Germany Colony could stake a fair claim to that elusive Jerusalem hipness, not all of them have the Yerushalmi distinction of Caffit, known throughout the city as the Germany Colony gathering place for the politicians, journalists, models, TV reporters and other personalities of the Holy City.

Beyond the opportunity for elbow rubbing with the elite, Caffit is much like any number of similar Emek Refaim restaurants: It serves kosher dairy food, mostly Italian but with a smattering of options from other corners of the Continent, augmented with the local ingredients and spices of the Middle East. Mountainous salads can be had, you can get your soup in a bread bowl, and appetizers include focaccia and antipasti, which are threatening to overcome pita and hummus in Jerusalem's dining scene. The many pasta dishes feature homemade pasta, a plus in a land where even somewhat expensive restaurants often use the boxed stuff.