6 Best Restaurants in Lower Galilee, Israel

Built on a pier extending into the Sea of Galilee, this family-run restaurant has breathtaking views from seats indoors and outside. This airy, casual spot with wooden tables and metal chairs is something of an institution, and locals keep coming back for the delicious meats—sizzling steaks, succulent goose liver, or long skewers of veal and vegetables, grilled slowly over hickory wood. The bluefin tuna carpaccio, caught by the manager's brother, is a delicacy. Save room for dessert, as all dishes are homemade.

In a magnificent 19th-century mansion with a Thousand and One Nights atmosphere, this eatery matches its magical setting with excellent Arab cuisine, including interesting salads and kebabs, as well as dishes with Indian and European influences. Pesto and grilled vegetables stuffed in a chicken breast is a good choice, as are the vegetarian dishes. Don't pass up dessert.

At lunchtime this popular establishment on the eastern shore bustles with tour groups, but it's a fine dinner option, too. Famous for St. Peter's fish, it has added sea bream, trout, and gray mullet to the menu, as well as entrées such as quiche, pizza, pasta, and salads. In fine weather, sit on the large outdoor terrace, and take in the view across the lake to Tiberias. Watch for the signs for "Kibbutz Inn Ein Gev."

The sweeping panorama from the wooden deck and picture windows is attraction enough at this family restaurant operated by Yossi Mass, his wife Penina, and son Oren. Known for its greens and imaginative salads, it also impresses with homemade bread and tarts of shallot, forest mushroom, and goat cheese, not to mention a colorful pie of beef, lamb, goose, tomatoes, pine nuts, and basil. Desserts make for an agonizing decision, so share.

This imposing restaurant commanding the corner as you enter Beit She'an offers friendly service in a sparkling clean dining room. Don’t fill up on the fresh homemade salads; the grilled meat is delicious, too.

No fewer than 20 fresh salads of seasonal produce and traditional recipes arrive at your table in this large and efficient dining room. Catering to busloads of tourists, the dining room is surprisingly quiet, and small groups do not feel outnumbered. Fish is the star, but traditional favorites like grilled beef and lamb are also exceptional.