#zabars

[secular-jew]

Zabar's is an iconic market on New York City, best known for its selection of appetizers, bagels, and smoked salmon, and not surprisingly, it has a rich Jewish history. Founded by Ukrainian Jewish immigrants Louis and Lillian Zabar, the almost 90-year-old store bears both the family name and remains family-owned to this day.

Louis Zabar was born in Ukraine in 1901. He fled the pogroms, where his father had been murdered, and arrived in the U.S. in the early 1920s. Lillian Teitlebaum escaped Ukraine and moved in with relatives in Philadelphia. She later relocated to New York City and ran into Louis Zabar, whom she had known from their village in Ukraine. The two married in 1927 and had three children: Saul, Stanley, and Eli.

In 1934, Zabar’s opened its first store on 80th and Broadway. By 1950, Louis was the owner of 10 markets when he passed away. From 1960 to 1994, Louis’s sons, Stanley and Saul, partnered and co-owned Zabar's with Murray Klein, who joined the store in 1953.

Today, Saul and Stanley remain involved in the store’s day-to-day business. Many of Louis and Lillian’s grandchildren and great-grandchildren are involved in different capacities. “Zabar’s was the place to come and see your mother and father, your grandparents, your cousins... the Zabar’s store is the center of the Zabar family,” Stanley said.

[jdpink]

The ensuing price battle was dubbed the "Beluga caviar war" by the New York City media.[2] Macy's initially went after Zabar's by placing a 14-ounce box of Beluga caviar on sale for US$149.[1] Klein quickly, and happily, lowered Zabar's own price of the Beluga roe in order to undercut Macy's sales, which forced Macy's to lower its own cost to US$129, which was considered a bargain in the caviar market.[2] Not to be outdone, Klein again lowered the Beluga price to just US$119 for a 14oz box and sold the product at a loss rather than lose to Macy's.[2] He correctly anticipated that the ensuing positive publicity and public relations for Zabar's over the dispute would more than make up for the negative loss of selling the caviar for such a low price.[2] Thus Klein was able to beat Macy's in terms of sales and public relations.

[determinate-negation]

fiddleheads, ramps and other alliums that you can only get during the spring

[periodically80s]

[terrasu]

:/

[unopenablebox]

unfortunately i am covetously watching the eater video that's just a tour of zabars

[saminoacids]

Nora Ephron on the Upper West Side

“I had never planned to live on the Upper West Side, but after a few weeks I couldn’t imagine living anywhere else, and I began, in my manner, to make a religion out of my neighborhood. This was probably a consequence of my not having any other religion in my life, but never mind. I was a block from H & H Bagels and Zabar’s. I was half a block from a subway station. There was an all-night newsstand across the street. On the corner was La Caridad, the greatest Cuban-Chinese restaurant in the world, or so I told my friends, and I made a religion of it, too.” From "Moving On, a Love Story"

[girlactionfigure]

Zabar's is New York City’s iconic market, best known for its selection of appetizers, bagels and smoked salmon, and not surprisingly, has a rich Jewish history. Founded by Ukrainian Jewish immigrants, Louis and Lillian Zabar, the almost 90-year-old store is both the family name and has been family-owned to this day.

Louis Zabar was born in Ukraine in 1901. He fled the pogroms, where his father had been murdered and arrived in the U.S. in the early 1920’s. Lillian Teitlebaum escaped Ukraine and moved in with relatives in Philadelphia. She later moved to New York City and ran into Louis Zabar, whom she had known from their village in Ukraine. The two married in 1927 and had three children: Saul, Stanley and Eli.

In 1934, Zabar’s opened its first store on 80th and Broadway. By 1950, Louis was the owner of 10 markets when he passed away. From 1960 to 1994, Louis’s sons, Stanley and Saul partnered and co-owned Zabar's with Murray Klein, who joined the store in 1953.

Today, Saul and Stanley remain involved in the store’s day to day business. Many of Louis and Lillian’s grandchildren and great-grandchildren are involved in different capacities. “Zabar’s was the place to come and see your mother and father, your grandparents, your cousins ... the Zabar’s store is the center of the Zabar family,” Stanley said.

Humans of Judaism

[note-a-bear]

I just had a lox sammich.

Do I make a kim chi and whitefish salad sammich

[rebelbrat]

The best revenge against an antisemite: Making them pay for your Jewish grocery store haul. >:333333

[couriernewvegas]

miss the years where one of my grandmothers sent a zabars gift basket each year for hanukkah . my parents said she stopped bc she wasnt sure anyone was actually using/eating the stuff in them . I WAS

[wally-b-feed]

Anthony Fineran, Union Zabar Manu, 2024

[sentury]

shanah tova 🍯🍎

[akiraeffect]

[shoemakerobstetrician]

I like to think of myself as Aziraphale, but a friend once got me to walk 10 extra blocks in a blizzard to get her the “best” rotisserie chicken. The merely “very good” rotisserie chicken (Zabar’s’ ffs) would have been on my way.

10 inches of snow on the ground, still snowing heavily, streets unplowed, most sidewalks not yet shoveled. She persuaded me via text.

Yeah, I’m Crowley.

[mariacallous]

Mandel bread, also called mandelbrot, is a type of cookie similar to the Italian biscotti and popular in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine. The cookies were popular throughout the 19th century among Eastern European Jews, often consumed by rabbis, merchants and other Jewish community members. They grew in popularity, known to be a dessert that kept well and traveled easily. But what is the backstory of this Jewish baked good? 

According to Gil Marks, author of the “Encyclopedia of Jewish Food,” mandel bread is thought to have originated in Germany and traveled Eastward, like many other Jewish baked goods. In the early Middle Ages, Italians created the original biscotti by partially baking the dough, cutting it into slices and then returning the pieces to a cooler oven to crisp. The second time in the oven extracts the moisture and lengthens the shelf life of the cookie. The exact year these cookies were adopted by Ashkenzai Jews is unknown, though mandel bread’s easy preparation made it ideal for the Sabbath. Once baking powder was added, mandel bread became lighter and fluffier than biscotti. Over time, Jewish cooks began to add dried fruit, nuts and chocolate chips. During Passover, it was common to make mandel bread with matzah meal instead of flour. The Yiddish word “mandlbroyt” translates to “almond bread,” as the baked good often included almonds. Among the Ukrainian Jewish community, mandelbrot is known as kamishbrot. By the 1940s mandel bread had made its mark in plenty of Jewish cookbooks.  

While traditional mandel bread is harder to find nowadays, there are still plenty of Jewish delis and companies honoring the classic dessert, such as Zabar’s, Michael’s Mandel Bread and C. Kreugers. There’s even a number of new Jewish baking companies who are adding playful, modern takes on the classic cookie. Whether you enjoy it on its own, with a cup of coffee or haven’t yet tried them, now you’ll know little more about the Jewish lineage of this beloved dessert. 

Ready to make some mandel bread at home? Here’s three recipes to try:

Adeena Sussman’s classic almond mandel bread

Chocolate chip mandel bread

Olive oil, almond and candied ginger mandel bread