Slow braised bourbon BBQ short ribs with crispy onions at Serengeti Restaurant in Baltimore.
The definition of kosher food is expanding as a result of a Jewish culinary renaissance
Slow braised bourbon BBQ short ribs with crispy onions at Serengeti Restaurant in Baltimore.
(CNN) Leonardo Nourafchan wanted to do something different. After trying out jobs in real estate, the California native knew he wanted to break into the food industry, starting with catering from his home and creating blogs.
He worked long hours in the kitchens of New York restaurants, including Mike's Bistro and Alenbi, then finally opened his Israeli restaurant Charcoal Grill & Bar in Los Angeles.Nourafchan snuck Mexican-influenced dishes -- inspired by the area's culinary scene -- onto his kosher menu. These included lamb shawarma tacos, which he said were incredibly popular. The restaurant shut down at the beginning of the pandemic, but by May 2020, Nourafchan was testing a new kosher Mexicali concept out of his former meat supplier's kitchen. Lenny's Casita, a kosher Mexican restaurant, officially launched in July 2021."It's kind of like a cross between a kosher Chipotle and Taco Bell, which are the things that I used to eat as a kid," Nourafchan told CNN.Read MoreNourafchan said his street food-inspired menu -- which boasts carne asado tacos with pico de gallo, chipotle honey wings and Mediterranean pitas called arayis -- is part of a larger "kosher food revolution" happening nationwide. In cities such as New York, Chicago, Miami and Baltimore, restaurants are redefining both kosher and Jewish food more than ever, pulling from traditionally non-kosher cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese, French and Italian.What defines kosher food
Kosher food has become significantly more accessible over the past decade, according to Elan Kornblum, president of Great Kosher Restaurants Magazine, who runs a popular Facebook group about kosher restaurants. He attributes this to social media that has presented kosher cooking as healthier and cleaner, the growing creativity of kosher chefs, and increased accessibility of kosher ingredients.Today, there are over a million ingredients that are certified kosher by many agencies, according to Roger Horowitz, author of "Kosher USA." At supermarkets, 30% to 40% of items are kosher-certified, Horowitz said. Many Orthodox rabbinical organizations have embedded kosher requirements into food manufacturing, incorporating modern science into centuries-old Jewish law.Kosher laws state that dairy cannot be eaten within six hours of meat. Land animals must chew their cud and have cloven hooves, according to the Torah, which disallows pork and rabbit. Fish must have fins and scales, including tuna, salmon and sea bass.Horowitz told CNN that as many Jews arrived to the US in the early 1900s, the integration of kosher food guidelines became a measure of their acceptance into American society, where Jewish dietary codes were at odds with predominantly Christian culinary traditions. The incorporation of kosher requirements into food manufacturing and supply chains has made it possible for many ingredients to be kosher-certified, especially those not traditionally associated with Jewish food.The certification of kosher meat was particularly challenging, according to Horowitz. While meats like pork are out of the question, there are many requirements for how poultry must be killed, which differ from processing procedures followed by mass producers. Beef is a "greater problem" because Jewish law prohibits the consumption of blood once the animal has been killed, so only the forequarters are permitted. The small number of kosher beef manufacturing centers has contributed to much higher prices for kosher beef than non-kosher beef."By and large kosher certified spaghetti sauce, take that example, there is no price difference from the non-kosher spaghetti sauce," Horowitz said. "Instead, in the meat area, you're paying a penalty, a surcharge for the Jewish religious requirements."The difficulties in operating a kosher restaurant
Many innovative and culturally diverse kosher restaurants have opened this year across the US. Although these restaurants expose many diners to previously unfamiliar dishes or styles of cooking, this experimentation comes with some risks and costs, according to a few owners.Bryan Gryka is the principal owner and executive chef of Milt's BBQ for the Perplexed in Chicago, with many dishes inspired by Gryka's upbringing in Arkansas. The menu includes options such as a 16-hour smoked brisket sandwich, "Noshville" hot chicken and applewood-smoked half chicken. Because of high kosher meat costs, which have shot up during the pandemic, menu prices have increased as well.Gryka took to social media to explain exactly how prices break down to make numbers more transparent. He has also posted about why restaurants use, for example, frozen French fries, or why they implement charges for cancellation.For certified kosher restaurants, frequent closures on Friday nights and Saturdays for Shabbat -- as well as on all Jewish holidays -- can amount to major revenue losses. Milt's is closed about 100 days per year, according to Gryka, making it harder to compete with others that are open all year."We do a lot of catering and events, and in terms of economics, it's a huge reason we've been successful, the ability to be able to do stuff outside of our four walls, because a lot of places if you don't have the catering, it's so limited the ways you can survive and be somewhat profitable," Gryka said.Soho Asian Bar and Grill, a contemporary Chinese- and Japanese-inspired eatery in Aventura, Florida, loses about 80 days out of the year. But according to owner Shlomi Ezra, having such a large menu at the "one-stop shop" -- featuring sushi, dim sum, noodle dishes, and steaks -- allows Soho to cater to a large kosher crowd that is largely unfamiliar with Asian flavors. Soho's commitment to serving everyone in the community, including those affected by the Surfside condo collapse last summer, has also helped because it attracts a large non-kosher crowd."I don't see any difference between a regular restaurant and a kosher restaurant," Ezra told CNN. "The restaurant has to be good, the service needs to be good, the food has to be on point so people don't forget you."