Jewish Foodie and Comedian Ori Laizerouvich Visits a Bakery and a Jewish Home in Hot Springs, Arkansas

In its latest effort to strengthen the bond between Israel and American Jewry, the Ruderman Family Foundation launched a 10-part original video series, “Jewish Foodie.” 

The series aims to encourage Israelis to deepen their knowledge about U.S. Jewish communities, and Jewish Americans to become better acquainted with their rich and diverse heritage and culture, all accomplished through a rich and fascinating culinary journey of Jewish food across the U.S.

As reported in The Jewish Link,

Hosted by the well-known Israeli actor and comedian Ori Laizerouvich, “Jewish Foodie” takes viewers on a journey of the broad diversity of American Jewry as a whole and its communities in particular through the innovative vehicle of food.

Focusing on the personal stories and cultural influences associated with Jewish food in four American regions, the series explores the Northeast, with its bagels and lox, knishes, delis, hot dogs, Chinese food and vegan fare; the Southeast, including barbecue, bourbon and baked goods; the Southwest, featuring tacos, Jewish-style burgers with latkes (“Jew Boy Burger”), huevos rancheros and rodeo food; and the Midwest, with pastrami sandwiches, bison burgers and Canukah gelt-making.

Viewers not only discover American Jewish communities’ food stories, but also the broader character of the communities themselves and their members, including communities whose Jewish presence may be surprising.

Actor and comedian Laizerouvich is a familiar face to fans of the Chai Flicks streaming series Shababnikim (The New Black) where he plays the role of Gedaliah, a very religious and very serious Yeshiva student.

In this sixth episode of the series, Laizerouvich visits Millie Baron's Ambrosia Bakery and attends a Friday night dinner at the Baron home in Hot Springs.

 (A note to our readers: While all of the food establishments visited by Laizerouvich specialize in Jewish food, only a few of them have kosher certification. We couldn't find such certification for the Hot Springs bakery.)

Tonight, Monday, and Tuesday we'll be observing Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah. We'll be back with our usual mix on Wednesday.

Enjoy, and Chag Sameach!

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Jewish Foodie and Comedian Ori Laizerouvich, Still in Memphis, Meets a "Jewish Elvis" and Visits a Distillery

In its latest effort to strengthen the bond between Israel and American Jewry, the Ruderman Family Foundation launched a 10-part original video series, “Jewish Foodie.” 

The series aims to encourage Israelis to deepen their knowledge about U.S. Jewish communities, and Jewish Americans to become better acquainted with their rich and diverse heritage and culture, all accomplished through a rich and fascinating culinary journey of Jewish food across the U.S.

As reported in The Jewish Link,

Hosted by the well-known Israeli actor and comedian Ori Laizerouvich, “Jewish Foodie” takes viewers on a journey of the broad diversity of American Jewry as a whole and its communities in particular through the innovative vehicle of food.

Focusing on the personal stories and cultural influences associated with Jewish food in four American regions, the series explores the Northeast, with its bagels and lox, knishes, delis, hot dogs, Chinese food and vegan fare; the Southeast, including barbecue, bourbon and baked goods; the Southwest, featuring tacos, Jewish-style burgers with latkes (“Jew Boy Burger”), huevos rancheros and rodeo food; and the Midwest, with pastrami sandwiches, bison burgers and Canukah gelt-making.

Viewers not only discover American Jewish communities’ food stories, but also the broader character of the communities themselves and their members, including communities whose Jewish presence may be surprising.

Actor and comedian Laizerouvich is a familiar face to fans of the Chai Flicks streaming series Shababnikim (The New Black) where he plays the role of Gedaliah, a very religious and very serious Yeshiva student.

In this fifth episode of the series, Laizerouvich, still in Memphis, passes by Elvis Presley's mansion (Graceland) and visits a kosher home specializing in brisket where he encounters a  kippah wearing "Jewish Elvis" and ends the day in a bourbon distillery.

 (A note to our readers: While all of the food establishments visited by Laizerouvich specialize in Jewish food, only a few of them have kosher certification. In this Memphis video, Ori visits a kosher home and a distillery.)

The Sukkot holiday starts tonight. We will be observing it on Monday and Tuesday. We'll be back with our usual mix on Wednesday.

Enjoy, and Chag Sameach!

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Jewish Foodie Ori Laizerouvich Visits Restaurants and Purim Celebrations in Brooklyn

In its latest effort to strengthen the bond between Israel and American Jewry, the Ruderman Family Foundation this month launched a 10-part original video series, “Jewish Foodie.” 

The series aims to encourage Israelis to deepen their knowledge about U.S. Jewish communities, and Jewish Americans to become better acquainted with their rich and diverse heritage and culture, all accomplished through a rich and fascinating culinary journey of Jewish food across the U.S.

As reported in The Jewish Link,

Hosted by the well-known Israeli actor and comedian Ori Laizerouvich, “Jewish Foodie” takes viewers on a journey of the broad diversity of American Jewry as a whole and its communities in particular through the innovative vehicle of food.

Focusing on the personal stories and cultural influences associated with Jewish food in four American regions, the series explores the Northeast, with its bagels and lox, knishes, delis, hot dogs, Chinese food and vegan fare; the Southeast, including barbecue, bourbon and baked goods; the Southwest, featuring tacos, Jewish-style burgers with latkes (“Jew Boy Burger”), huevos rancheros and rodeo food; and the Midwest, with pastrami sandwiches, bison burgers and Canukah gelt-making.

Viewers not only discover American Jewish communities’ food stories, but also the broader character of the communities themselves and their members, including communities whose Jewish presence may be surprising.

Actor and comedian Laizerouvich is a familiar face to fans of the Chai Flicks streaming series Shababnikim (The New Black) where he plays the role of Gedaliah, a very religious and very serious Yeshiva student.

In this third episode of the series, Laizerouvich visits the Miss Ada Israeli restaurant and the home of Rabbi Manis Friedman, a well-known Hassid, rabbi, author, social philosopher and public speaker.

 (A note to our readers: While all of the food establishments visited by Laizerouvich specialize in Jewish food, only a few of them have kosher certification. In this Brooklyn video, only the Friedman home is kosher.)

Be sure to subscribe to Jewish Humor Central. Just enter your email address in the box at the upper left of our home page for your automatic free subscription. Or enter www.jewishhumorcentral.com into your browser each day. We'll be sharing the next nine episodes of this series with you each Sunday. Enjoy!

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Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: The Jews of Turkmenistan

Last week we shared a video by world traveler Drew Goldberg, who goes by the name Drew Binsky when he travels. 

Binsky is close to achieving his goal of visiting each of the 193 countries recognized by the United Nations. In just a few months, the 28-year-old will have done it. 
It started when he spent part of his college junior year in Prague after a Birthright trip to Israel. Then he got hooked on travel and never stopped.

Today we're going along for the ride as Drew pays a visit to Turkmenistan, where he encounters Olga, who with her family tries to maintain Jewish traditions in the Muslim country, which has shared borders with Iran, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan, and which is friendly to all religions.

Enjoy!

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Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: Meet Mike Hanopol, the Filipino Jewish Rock Star

Drew Goldberg, who uses his childhood nickname Binsky when he travels, is close to achieving his goal of visiting each of the 193 countries recognized by the United Nations. In just a few months, the 28-year-old will have done it. 

It started when he spent part of his college junior year in Prague after a Birthright trip to Israel. Then he got hooked on travel and never stopped.

As Josefin Dolsten wrote in The Times of Israel, 

Goldberg grew up in a Jewish family in Scottsdale, Arizona. He attended Temple Chai, a Reform congregation, where he had his bar mitzvah.

After graduating with an economics degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Goldberg took a job teaching English in South Korea. He created a travel blog to document his experience traveling throughout Asia over the next 18 months.

Goldberg makes a point of visiting Jewish communities in the countries he visits, and he says traveling has helped him connect with his Jewish identity. He has visited Jewish communities in Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Ethiopia and the Philippines.

“I feel more connected with the religion from a global perspective because I’ve really gone in the houses of Jews around the world,” he said.

We'll share some of his videos in the next few weeks, starting today with his video report about meeting Mike Hanopol, the Filipino Jewish rock star. 

Enjoy!

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Pitching an Israel Honeymoon to Prince Harry and Meghan

Britain's Prince Harry is set to tie the knot with US actress Meghan Markle at Windsor Castle on May 19. It's been confirmed that the wedding will take place at St. George's Chapel in an hour-long ceremony which will be beamed across the world.

While we're pretty much up to speed on the events of the day in question, there's one thing we're all still in the dark about -- the couple's honeymoon destination.

CNN and other media outlets have been speculating that the couple will honeymoon in Namibia, Botswana, Tahiti, or Las Vegas. But Yuval Haklai, an Israeli stand-up comedian, has been touting Israel as their destination of choice. 

And why not? With its view from the Ramon Crater, 300 wineries, football (soccer), lots of food, parties, and the beaches, Israel makes a wonderful location for a honeymoon.

Will the royal couple take his advice and that of President Reuven Rivlin? We'll know soon enough.

Here's Yuval Haklai's sales pitch for an Israeli honeymoon.

Enjoy!

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Conan O'Brien's El Al Encounter en Route to Israel - Second of a Series

Late night talk show host Conan O'Brien is spending a week in Israel filming a Conan Without Borders travel show to be aired in September.

We're following his antics as he boards an El Al plane and brings his comedy to Israel.

In this video clip, second of the series, he has an encounter with the toilet on an El Al plane in flight. After spending an hour and a half in the toilet to get a suitable video sequence, he offers some very creative interpretations of the Hebrew words on the towel disposal bin and lotion dispenser. Meanwhile, an El Al passenger, not known for patience, bangs on the door repeatedly to try to gain access.

We'll be sharing more of his funny videos with you over the next few weeks. Next episode: The Tel Aviv skyline and shakshuka.

Enjoy!

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YidLife Crisis in London Pt. 2 - Britishkayt: Think Yiddish, Drink British

We've been following the Canadian comedy duo of Jamie Elman and Eli Batalion as they travel the world in search of funny situtations involving Yiddish culture, language, and food.

Their web series, YidLife Crisis, was recently nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for best original digital media series.

They have taken their act on the road, performing a live version of their show in Krakow, Tel Aviv, Toronto, Montreal, Los Angeles and Birmingham, England.

The pair has also received a prestigious grant from the Natan Fund and have created a series of five travelogues featuring their impressions of Tel Aviv. In February we posted their funny Valentine’s Day episode guest staring Mayim Bialik.

We've been touring London with Jamie and Eli in two blog posts in the last two months. Now we're back with part 2 of their Britishkayt series: Think Yiddish, Drink British.

In this episode Jamie and Eli talk with Leon Silver of the East London Central Synagogue about changing demographics, the Jewish origin of Fish & Chips, and good Scotch whisky.
Enjoy! 

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Jewish Traces in Unexpected Places: Malta's Intriguing Jewish Heritage

If you've traveled around the world and think you've seen every country with a Jewish presence, you might be pleasantly surprised if you visit the tiny island of Malta, off the coast of Sicily.

We came across a short video depicting Jewish history and current Jewish life on the island, and thought we'd share it with you as a break from standup comedy.

Of course there's a Chabad House (there's probably one on Mars, too) and Wikipedia has some interesting facts about Malta's Jewish traces.

The first Jew known to have set foot on Malta was Paul of Tarsus, whose ship foundered there in 62 CE. Paul went on to introduce Christianity to the island population.

The Jewish people generally prospered during the Middle Ages and were not required to live in ghettos. Most owned agricultural land or worked as merchants. Avraham Abulafia, a well-known Jewish mystic, lived on Comino from 1285 to his death in the 1290s. In 1479 Malta and Sicily came under Aragonese rule and the 1492 Edict of Expulsion forced all Jews to leave the country. Because they made up such a large portion of the island's population the Spanish Crown forced them to pay compensation for the losses caused by their expulsion.

In the time before World War II many Jews fleeing Nazism came to Malta as it was the only European country not to require visas of Jews fleeing German rule. Numerous Maltese Jews fought Germany in the British Army during the war.

Today, 1,000 Jews live in Malta, of which many are elderly due to the tendency of young inhabitants to emigrate. Maltese Jews live mainly around the capital. The local flat bread called ftira and the traditional Maltese loaf are both kosher.

In 2000, a new synagogue was built with donations from the United States and the UK. The Jewish Foundation of Malta now manages it along with a Jewish Center. Malta's relations with Israel have been friendly since the former's independence.

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Classic Jackie Mason - "Exotic Island and Safari Vacations"

Are you planning a vacation trip to an exotic island or a safari? After a few minutes with Jackie Mason, you may want to rethink the whole idea and spend your vacation sitting in your house.

In this classic excerpt from Jackie's "Ultimate Jew" Broadway show in March 2009 that he calls "Stupid Vacations" Jackie cuts through the superlatives that Jews use to describe wonderful vacations. 

He tells it like it is, poking fun of the beautiful blue waters on exotic French islands and recounting the terror of sitting in a bouncing truck on safari with two gentiles with long guns sitting behind him.

Enjoy!

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