Jewish Eats Series

Join us for an informative, surprising, and tasty exploration of the diversity of Jewish food. All programs will feature educational presentations paired with appropriate food or drink.

The programs are free and in-person at BAI. Registration is required for each event.

What Makes Traditional Foods Jewish

Saturday, January 6, 2024 at 12p

Sephardic & Judeo-Arabic recipe preserver, cookbook author, and culinary Instructor Jennifer Abadi will discuss whether there is such a thing as Jewish cuisine, and how trade, kashrut food restrictions, migration, and access to ingredients have influenced the popular recipes of the Jewish communities in the United States, Israel, and world today.

A Jewish Food Startup Success Story

Tuesday, February 13, 2024 at 7p

Amy Zitelman is cofounder and CEO of Soom Foods, which makes some of the world’s best tahini and tahini products right here in Philadelphia.  In addition to being the preferred tahini of award winning chefs such as Michael Solomonov, Soom has been featured in publications such as New York Times, Forbes, Bon Appetit, Food and Wine and more. Learn what it takes to innovate and deliver a top-quality version of an ancient product, and Amy’s entrepreneurial journey.

The Jewish Deli

Saturday, February 24, 2024 at 12p

Ted Merwin is the author of Pastrami on Rye: An Overstuffed History of the Jewish Deli, which won the 2015 National Jewish Book Award in Education. He’ll give an entertaining and dynamic look at an iconic American Jewish culinary institution.

Israeli Wine Tasting and Winemaker Talk

Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at 6p

Jacob Ner David, a successful Israeli tech entrepreneur, is founder of Jezreel Valley Winery, based in Kibbutz Hannaton in Northern Israel. We’ll have the opportunity to taste some of Jezreel’s distinctive and delicious wines, and also hear from Jacob live via Zoom about Jezreel’s story and the current situation in Israel.