Noor Druze Restaurant

**Current Hours of Operation During the War: Tuesday to Thursday 9 am – 9 pm, Friday 9 am – 2 pm

Noor is a Galilean Druze restaurant, established by Basma Hino in the center of the village of Julis. Basma is an IDF widow who established the place with a lot of faith and joy for life. The restaurant is named after her son Noor. The designed restaurant offers an experience of a pampering meal in a Druze village. The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, based on the local flavors and served in traditional dishes. The cuisine is based on conventional home food, the raw materials come from local crops, from the local butcher, and the vegetables are grown in the village or its surroundings.

Noor offers a traditional menu where you can indulge in mouthwatering Galilean-Druze dishes. There is also a special menu for children and meat lovers. Fresh coffee and desserts are also available. If you are lucky, you can also meet Basma and hear her story! You can also pre-order meals for groups or families, including a meeting with Basma.

Since October 7th, 2023

“Never in my life have I imagined myself participating in something like this. What a remarkable honor,” said Basma Hino while walking along the pathways of Mount Herzl, surrounded by people from all corners of the country and walks of life, lighting the beacon of “giving” on Israel’s 76th Independence Day.

Amidst escalating tensions along Israel’s border with Lebanon, Basma transformed her restaurant in the Druze village of Julius into a vital kosher resource for soldiers stationed in the area. As a result, she was part of a group honored by lighting the Torch of Giving.

“I want to feed all the Israeli soldiers! They are all like my children, it doesn’t matter their background,” she insisted.  The commitment is rooted in her family history. Basma’s late husband, Marcel, sustained severe injuries during an army mission in 2002, leaving him hospitalized for over a decade before he passed away.

Basma persevered, harnessing her passion for baking to later establish her restaurant, “Noor.”

As the war intensified and tourism dwindled, Basma and her son Noor took action repurposing leftover food supplies to craft meals for soldiers. Their initial effort, born out of a desire to honor Marcel’s memory, evolved into a full-fledged commitment to make the restaurant kosher, ensuring accessibility for all soldiers.

Basma dedicates one day each week to preparing meals exclusively for soldiers, with the support of volunteers who come via the Jewish National Fund-USA.

”During this period, there aren’t as many visitors to the restaurant, especially with the area heating up and recent rocket attacks on our village,” Hino noted with worry. “It’s evident that the situation is escalating which is why it is crucial I keep focusing on the project of providing meals for soldiers. That’s the priority right now.  Hopefully, we will be able to do so as long as needed and our initiative attracts donations and volunteers.”

For Basma, the restaurant serves as more than just a place of business – it’s a symbol of solidarity and bridging divides.

“As a Druze, it is very important for me to strengthen the relationship between the Druze and the Jews,” Hino insists.  “We all live here together, and at my restaurant, we cook shoulder to shoulder for our hero soldiers.”

Thousands of Americans came with the JNF-USA volunteer missions to Israel, giving hours of volunteer work. Some have joined Basma Hino in her Druze restaurant, Noor, cooking and packing nutritious warm meals for soldiers on the Lebanon border. 

Western Galilee Now – Small Business Consortium works with Basma weekly, giving her professional business tools and guidance throughout this whole changing process.