The Café Mersand in Tel Aviv

© Goethe-Institut

Walter Mersand was a new immigrant from Germany who yearned for European coffee houses. In 1958 he set up Café Mersand – not far from the beach. Since then the interior décor has remained unaltered despite the change in ownership. Admittedly it is more reminiscent of an espresso bar. Customers sit on simple stools or benches without upholstery. Anyone frequenting this place is visiting one of the last real Yekkes (Jews of German origin) institutions in the country.

© Goethe-Institut

They were always – and still are – considered reliable, punctual, honest and extremely punctilious. But whilst such character traits were more likely to be associated with a bad reputation in the past, nowadays they have become desirable attributes. The thing is, being a Yekke is no longer a sort of swear word, it’s a term of praise. “I’m a Yekke” is something Israelis claim proudly if they have these (Prussian) virtues. Regardless of their origin.