A chef who came with a contract, an envoy who stayed, a Chabad couple, a businessman, an ambassador and a footballer. Each came for a different reason.
According to Wall-Street.ro, Eli Davidai founded Quadrant Amroq Beverages in 1991, which received the franchise to bottle Pepsi in Romania.
Rabbi Naftali and Rebbetzin Risha Deutsch arrived in 1999. Since then, according to Rabbi Deutsch, Jews from Israel and other countries have come for study and business.
We found no official, up-to-date figure. The best-known public estimate, about 10,000, is Rabbi Deutsch's from 2007.
Israelis in Romania: the short answer
Israelis have lived and worked in Romania for more than thirty years. Some came right after the fall of communism, some for work or study, and some because of family roots. Most of them live in Bucharest.
In this chapter we have gathered six stories of prominent Israelis: a chef, a school founder, a rabbi, a businessman, an ambassador and a footballer. Each came for a different reason, and each shows a different side of life here. Every fact is checked against published reports, with a link to each source.
In plain words: you would not be the first. Israelis came before you and built businesses, schools and a community here, and their path is a good map for anyone looking at Romania today.
Who the Israelis in Romania are today
We found no official, up-to-date figure for the number of Israelis living in Romania. The best-known public estimate is old: in 2007, Rabbi Naftali Deutsch of Chabad estimated, in an article on lubavitch.com, that their number had reached about 10,000. That is one person's estimate from almost 20 years ago, so we give it only as a point of reference.
What is clear is how the community has changed. According to Rabbi Deutsch, when he arrived in 1999 the Jewish community was almost entirely made up of Romanian-born Jews. A few years later, Jews from Israel and other countries began to arrive for study and business. Today Bucharest has institutions that serve Israelis directly: a school that teaches Hebrew, a Chabad house with a kosher restaurant, and a community centre that also issues membership cards to Israeli passport holders. The practical details are in our chapter on the Jewish community in Romania.
Why Israelis come to Romania
Four reasons come up again and again in the stories and sources we checked:
- Work and business. As early as 2007, Rabbi Deutsch described Israelis who found work and a living in Romania and stayed for the long term. Eli Davidai set up a business here in 1991, and chef Joseph Hadad arrived in 1997 with a work contract.
- Study. According to Chabad, many Jewish students, most of them Israeli, study in Cluj, and a Chabad house was set up there for them.
- Roots. The parents of Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis and of Ambassador Lior Ben Dor have roots in Romania. For many Israelis, a family connection is what opens the door.
- A mission. Some of the strongest stories began with an assignment: from the Jewish Agency, from Chabad or from Israel's Foreign Ministry.
On relations between the two countries, see Romania and Israel relations. On everyday life, see living in Bucharest: pros and cons.
Six stories
Chef Joseph Hadad: from a two-year contract to almost 30 years
Hadad first came in 1996 for a few days, to plan a wedding menu at the Casa Vernescu restaurant, and returned in 1997 with a two-year contract. For two years he commuted back and forth, and the family moved only after his wife had checked schools in Bucharest. Today he is a Romanian citizen, has been a judge on the cooking shows Top Chef and MasterChef, and restaurants bearing his name operate in central Bucharest. The full story of chef Joseph Hadad.
Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis: a children's club that became a school
She was sent to Bucharest by the Jewish Agency for just three months in the early 1990s, and she stayed. A small children's club she started led to an offer from Ronald Lauder to open a school, and that is how Laude-Reut was born. According to the school, it now has more than 600 pupils, from kindergarten to high school, and in September 2026 it marked 30 years. The full story of Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis.
Rabbi Naftali Deutsch: Chabad Romania since 1999
Rabbi Deutsch, born in Jerusalem, and Rebbetzin Risha, from Kfar Chabad, arrived in Bucharest in 1999 as newlyweds. At the time, the Yeshua Tova synagogue held services once a week. Today, according to Chabad, it has daily services, and alongside it a kosher restaurant, a shop, a kindergarten and a school. The full story of Rabbi Naftali Deutsch.
Eli Davidai: the man who brought Pepsi
According to ZF, Davidai was born in Israel, the youngest of seven children in a poor family, and came to Romania in the early 1990s. According to Wall-Street.ro, in 1991 he founded Quadrant Amroq Beverages, which received the franchise to bottle Pepsi drinks in Romania. In 2021 Financial Intelligence described him as someone who feels at home in Bucharest, a city he has been coming back to for more than thirty years. The full story of Eli Davidai.
Ambassador Dr. Lior Ben Dor: representing Israel in his parents' country
According to G4Media, Ben Dor has been a diplomat in Israel's Foreign Ministry since 1994, with postings in Egypt, Uruguay, the UK, Argentina and Brazil, and arrived in Bucharest as ambassador in August 2024. His parents were born in Romania, his mother in Buhuși and his father in Bacău. In May 2026 he said, according to Digi24: "Romania has become a part of me" ("România a devenit o parte din mine"). The full story of Ambassador Lior Ben Dor.
You would not be the first. Israelis came before you and built businesses, schools and a community here.
Ofri Arad: an Israeli footballer at FCSB
Arad, born in 1998 on Kibbutz HaHotrim, joined FCSB in Bucharest in January 2026 from Kairat Almaty. According to Sport1, in May 2026 he scored in the 107th minute against Dinamo Bucharest, the goal that took the club into the European qualifiers. According to Wikipedia, as of October 2026 he is still listed in the squad. The full story of Ofri Arad.
Israelis with Romanian roots
Not every connection to Romania starts with a move. Many Israelis have parents or grandparents who were born in Romania, and some of them apply to restore their citizenship.
Asaf Avidan. According to HotNews (June 2026), the musician told a concert audience in Bucharest on 17 May that he had been trying for several years to get Romanian citizenship, "but your bureaucracy moves more slowly" ("dar birocrația voastră se mișcă mai greu"). According to sources quoted in the article, the National Citizenship Authority approved his application, and only the oath of allegiance remained. His grandparents were born in Romania, and he himself lives in France.
Nancy Brandes. The composer and arranger was born in Bucharest, where in the early 1960s he founded the rock band Roșu și Negru. In 1975 he emigrated to Israel and has lived there ever since, but he has come back to perform in Romania, and in 2022 he went on stage again with the band's members in Iași. The full story is in our article on Nancy Brandes.
In the profiles too. Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis's parents left Ploiești in 1947, and Ambassador Ben Dor's parents were born in Buhuși and Bacău.
Who qualifies, which documents you need and what has changed since Law 14/2025: see our guide to Romanian citizenship for Israelis and the chapter on visas, residence and legal status in Romania.
What the stories teach a family moving from Israel
Try first, then move. Hadad came for a few days, and Ben-Nun Cherbis for three months. Neither of them jumped in on the first day.
School first, then the neighbourhood. In Hadad's case, the family moved only after a school had been found. On today's options, see international education in Romania and our guide to international schools in Bucharest.
The community is there, but you have to reach out. Chabad, Laude-Reut and the community centre all exist. A new family needs to make contact itself, ideally before the flight.
Frequently asked questions
How many Israelis live in Romania?
We found no official, up-to-date figure. The best-known public estimate is Rabbi Naftali Deutsch's from 2007, about 10,000 Israelis, and it is old and unofficial.
How do you meet Israelis in Bucharest?
The most common ways are a Shabbat meal or a holiday event at Chabad, events at the Jewish Community Centre (JCC), which also issues membership cards to Israeli passport holders, and the Laude-Reut school for families with children. The details are in the Jewish community in Romania.
How were the stories chosen?
We chose Israelis who live or work in Romania and have public media coverage that can be checked. We did not include real estate developers, agents or Compass staff.
Were the people in this article interviewed for the site?
No. All the profiles are based on earlier interviews and published reports, with a link to each source. The quotes are word for word from those sources, in our translation, with the original alongside.
The bottom line
The Israelis who built a life in Romania came for different reasons: work, a mission, study or roots. What most of them have in common is that they started with a small step, checked, and only then decided to stay.
If you are at the checking stage, book a 30-minute call with me. We will go through the questions they asked themselves: work, school, community and neighbourhood.
Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania
Sources: lubavitch.com, Opportunity in Romania Lures Growing Numbers of Israelis, 5 January 2007 · chabad.org, What It's Like to Be a Rabbi in Romania · Revista Biz, The road from Haifa to Bucharest, 15 October 2013 · Kan 11, "On the Napkin": Bucharest with chef Yossi Hadad, 10 May 2018 (Hebrew) · Wikipedia, Top Chef Romania · Revista Biz, The new MasterChef judges, 12 July 2019 · Joseph Hadad, official site · LIFE.ro, interview with Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis, 24 September 2021 · Laude-Reut, About us · Laude-Reut, opening of the 2026–2027 school year · ZF, Eli Davidai, 27 November 2009 · Wall-Street.ro, Eli Davidai, 18 October 2012 · Financial Intelligence, interview with Eli Davidai, 9 December 2021 · G4Media, the new ambassador Lior Ben Dor, 20 August 2024 · Digi24, "Romania has become a part of me", 27 May 2026 · Sport1, Ofri Arad against Dinamo, 30 May 2026 (Hebrew) · Wikipedia, Ofri Arad · Gazetar, Arad stays at FCSB, 17 August 2026 · HotNews, Asaf Avidan and Romanian citizenship, 13 June 2026
Based on public reports and published interviews, correct as of 22 October 2026. The people featured were not interviewed for this article. General information only, not legal, tax or financial advice.
The complete guide: relocating to Romania
- Relocating to Romania: the complete guide
- Visas, residence and legal status in Romania
- The Jewish community in Romania
- International education in Romania
- Prominent Israelis in Romania (you are here)
Prominent Israelis in Romania: all the stories
Now you know more.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult local professionals before any transaction.
