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The Felafel Song Shir HaFelafel ‫שִׁירִׁהִׁפִׁלִׁאפִׁל‬
What’s chumus without felafel? These two Israeli snacks go hand-in-hand, though the best felafel
sandwich will be stuffed to the brim with a host of other flavors as well: freshly baked pita bread,
smooth and garlicky chumus, salat made from finely chopped, garden-fresh tomatoes and cucumbers,
crispy fried felafel, creamy techina, chips (French fries), chamutzim (pickles)… If you’re especially
adventurous, you might add some red or green zchug (spicy pepper paste) or amba (a pungent Iraqi
sauce made from mango and fenugreek). Felafel is a fast, cheap and relatively healthy meal and you will
find simple felafel storefronts dotting city streets just as readily as you will find hotdog stands in New
York City. While Israeli cuisine boasts extraordinary dishes bound to impress the most discerning critic,
no Israeli food experience is complete without biting into felafel b’pita, the sandwich that showcases the
flavors and cuisines of the many people and places that made Israel the eclectic and vibrant country that
it is today.
This famous, tongue-in-cheek song, was written by Dan Almagor and made famous by performer Nissim Garame.
Lechol medinah kan ba'olam
ma'achal le'umi hamukar
lechulam,
vekol yeled bagan yode'a ki
ha'ochel macaroni hu italki.
La'Ostrim beVienna schnitzel
ta'im,
vehatzarfatim ochlim tzfarde'im
hasinim ochlim orez dak
verazeh,
vehakanibalim ochlim zeh et
zeh.
Velanu yesh falafel,
falafel, falafel,
le'aba matanah
gam ima kan konah,
lesavta haz'kenah
nik'neh chatzi manah.
Vegam hachotenet hayom
tekabel
falafel, falafel
im harbeh harbeh harbeh
pilpel.
Every country here in the world
has a national dish that's known to
everyone,
and every children in kindergarten
knows that
the meal of macaroni is
Italian.
The Austrians in Vienna have tasty
schnitzel
and the French eat frogs
the Chinese eat fine and delicate rice,
and the cannibals eat one another.
And we have falafel,
falafel, falafel,
a present for Dad
even Mom buys it here,
for old Grandma
we'll buy half a portion
And even the mother-in-law will get
today
falafel, falafel
with lots and lots of peppers.
,‫לכל מִׁדִׁינִׁה כאן בעולם‬
,‫מִׁאִׁכִׁל לאומי המוכר לכולם‬
‫וכל ילד בגן יודע כי‬
,‫האוכל מקרוני הוא איטלקי‬
‫לאוסטרים בוינה שניצל‬
,‫טעים‬
.‫והצרפתים אוכלים צפרדעים‬
‫הסינים אוכלים אורז דק‬
,‫ורזה‬
‫והקניבלים אוכלים זה את‬
.‫זה‬
,‫ולנו יש פלאפל‬
,‫ פלאפל‬,‫פלאפל‬
‫לאִׁבִׁא מתנה‬
,‫מא כאן קונה‬
ִׁ ִׁ‫גם א‬
‫לסִׁבִׁתִׁא הזקנה‬
.‫מנִׁה‬
ִׁ ‫נקנה חִׁצִׁי‬
‫וגם החותנת היום תקבל‬
‫ פלאפל‬,‫פלאפל‬
.‫ הרבה פִׁלִׁפִׁל‬,‫עם הִׁרִׁבִׁה‬
‫פעם כשבא יהודי לישראל‬
."‫נשק לאדמה וברך ה"גומל‬
‫ הוא רק יורד מן‬,‫היום‬
‫המטוס‬
‫וכבר קֹונִׁה פלפל ושותה‬
.‫גזוז‬
,‫ יש רק נשיא‬,‫אצלנו אין מלך‬
‫אבל במלוכה כבר השגנו‬
.‫שיא‬
- ‫אצלנו כל יום קם מלך חדש‬
.‫אחד מאושר השני מיואש‬
Pa'am k'sheba yehudi leyisrael
nishek la'adamah uverach
ha"gomel"
Hayom, hu rak yored min
hamatos
uch'var koneh falafel veshoteh
gazoz.
Etzlenu ein melech, yesh rak
nasi,
aval bam'luchah kvar hesagnu
si.
Etzlenu kol yom kam melech
chadash
echad "me'ushar" hasheni
"meyo'ash."
Once when a Jew came to Israel
he kissed the ground and blessed the
creator
Today, he just gets off the plane
and already goes to buy falafel and
drinks pop
Around here we don't have a king, just
a president
but we've already reached a peak in
the kingdom
Around here each day a new king
rises
a "happy" one, the second
"desperate"
Ki lanu yesh falafel,
falafel, falafel,
ki kan moch'rim larov,
meri'ach kol har'chov
reichot shel sumsumin
veshemen parafin.
Vegam tzarevet efshar po
lekabel
mifalafel, falafel
im harbeh harbeh harbeh
pilpel.
Because we have falafel,
falafel, falafel,
for here they sell to the majority,
the whole street smells (of it)
fragrances of sesames
and paraffin oil.
And one can even get heartburn
from falafel, falafel
with lots and lots of peppers.
Falafel la'asot zeh lo pashut,
falafel la'asot zot omanut,
veyuchal lehav'chin kol ben
teiman
bein falafel shel chovev o shel
aman.
Hamatz'chik beyoter hu, allah el
azim
falafel asui beyadei ashkenazim!
Bafalafel kazeh tamid tar'gish
min ta'am muzar shel gefilte
fish.
To make falafel is not easy,
to make falafel is an art,
and any Yemenite will be able to
distinguish
between falafel of an amateur or an
artist
The funniest thing is, Almighty God,
falafel made by Ashkenazim!
In such a falafel you'll always taste
a weird type of taste of gefilte fish.
‫פלאפל לעשות זה ֹלא‬
‫ פלאפל לעשות זאת‬,‫פִׁשּוט‬
,‫מנּות‬
ִׁ ‫אֹו‬
‫ויוכל להבחין כל בן תימן‬
‫בין פלאפל של חובב או של‬
.‫אמן‬
‫ אללה‬,‫המצחיק ביותר הוא‬
,‫אל עזים‬
,‫פלאפל עשוי בידי אשכנזים‬
‫בפלאפל כזה תמיד תרגיש‬
‫מין טעם מוזר של געפילטע‬
.‫פיש‬
Rak lanu yesh falafel,
falafel, falafel,
le'aba matanah
Only we have falafel,
falafel, falafel,
a present for Dad
,‫רק לנו יש פלאפל‬
.‫ פלאפל‬,‫פלאפל‬
‫לאבא מתנה‬
,‫כי לנו יש פלאפל‬
.‫ פלאפל‬,‫פלאפל‬
,‫כי כאן מוכרים לרוב‬
‫מריח כל הרִׁחֹוב‬
‫ריחות של שומשומין‬
.‫ושמן פרפין‬
‫וגם צרבת אפשר פה לקבל‬
‫ פלאפל‬,‫מפלאפל‬
‫ הרבה‬,‫ הרבה‬,‫עם הרבה‬
.‫פלפל‬
gam ima kan konah,
lesavta haz'kenah
nik'neh chatzi manah.
Ki zeh hama'achal hale'umi shel
Yisrael
falafel, falafel
im harbeh harbeh harbeh pilpel
even Mom buys it here,
for old Grandma
we'll buy half a portion
For this is the national meal of Israel falafel, falafel
with lots and lots of peppers.
,‫גם אמא כאן קונה‬
‫לסבתא הזקנה‬
.‫נקנה חצי מנה‬
‫כי זה הִׁמִׁאִׁכִׁל הִׁלִׁאּומִׁי של‬
‫ישראל‬
‫ פלאפל‬,‫פלאפל‬
‫ הרבה‬,‫ הרבה‬,‫עם הרבה‬
.‫פלפל‬
View song at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy371LcTFq8