Does anyone do "Kosher Style"?

[Old Timer]

Do any of you offer "Kosher Style" entrees'

If so, how well do they sell?

I am trying to diversify our menu to include those who for whatever reason do not eat typical "restarant food".

Our kitchen is not kosher, but my thinking is if I were to use all kosher ingredients, I could offer the kosher style.

Comments welcome.

[Daniel Rogov]

I have to ask what you mean by "kosher style". Are you, for example referring to what most people think of as "Jewish food" - that is to say the kitchen of Eastern Europe (e.g. cholent, kishke). I also have to ask what you mean by "typical" restaurant food because if it is not "Jewish food" (either Sepharadi or Ashkenazi) that you are referring to, I do not know the differences between kosher "style" and regular food.

[Old Timer]

I have to ask what you mean by "kosher style".  Are you, for example referring to what most people think of as "Jewish food" - that is to say the kitchen of Eastern Europe (e.g. cholent, kishke).  I also have to ask what you mean by "typical" restaurant food because if it is not "Jewish food" (either Sepharadi or Ashkenazi) that you are referring to, I do not know the differences between kosher "style" and regular food.

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What I think I am referring to is offering food that would present an option for Jewish diners. Serving items like Matzo Soup or Knishes for example.

My reference to Kosher style would indicate to the diners that all ingredients were Kosher, but the kitchen is not.

I do not know of any kosher restaurants within 50 miles.

With that being the case, where would Jewish diners go to eat?

Or does it not matter if a restaurant is kosher?

[Gifted Gourmet]

I do not know of any kosher restaurants within 50 miles.

With that being the case, where would Jewish diners go to eat?

Or does it not matter if a restaurant is kosher?

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Religiously observant people will, of necessity, only eat rabbinically supervised foods ... there are many more who don't care about the rigors of kashrut but enjoy classic Jewish cuisine ... many religiously observant people will opt to prepare their own food rather than eat out in a restaurant ... their personal rules, for lack of a better word, can not be changed to fit the circumstances ...

[cakewalk]

My reference to Kosher style would indicate to the diners that all ingredients were Kosher, but the kitchen is not. 

I do not know of any kosher restaurants within 50 miles.

With that being the case, where would Jewish diners go to eat?

Or does it not matter if a restaurant is kosher?

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My understanding of "kosher style" is not that all ingredients are kosher. I always thought "kosher style" meant that the meat is not necessarily kosher (and probably isn't, usually because of its expense), but that the caterer/restaurant will not mix meat with milk products, will not serve pork products or shellfish or anything else that is clearly not kosher. So whatever you decide, you should make sure that your customer base is on the same page you are in terms of what "kosher style" means.

Religiously observant Jews are obviously not going to eat at a "kosher style" restaurant no matter how you define the term. But there does seem to be a market for others. Many Jews are not religious and don't mind eating non-kosher beef, but won't eat pork or shellfish and won't mix meat and milk. And of course there are many non-Jews who simply like "Jewish food" (which I'm using to mean classic Ashkenzi food.) So there's definitely an "audience" out there, but I don't know anything about your neck of the woods, so I don't know if they're in your neighborhood.

[Daniel Rogov]

Your reference to two specific dishes indicates that you indeed want to go in the direction of Eastern European Jews and that is fine, but whether it would be profitable or not is another story altogether.

It would certainly not attract the observant crowd for, as several have already pointed out on this thread, being "kosher-style" has something akin to being "a little bit pregnant". For the observant, food is either kosher or it is not.

For the less observant, frankly I am simply not sure how many would go to a regular restaurant (you have not stated the style of cuisine in your establishment) to dine on matzo-ball soup or knishes. They might though go to a restaurant where the Italian, French, Turkish, Greek or whatever food was kosher-style.... but that would take a good deal of knowledge on the part of your chef/cook, for (again as pointed out earlier) certain combinations are forbidden (e.g. milk products and meat in the same meal) and simply using some substitutes (e.g. artificial cream products for cream) creates cookery known as "bad" while others (e.g. smoked goose breast for bacon) can be quite good.

In short, a good deal of reflection is called for before you decide because you might, by lack of experience or knowledge, risk offending more than pleasing your potential audience.

Whatever you decide, best of luck....

[Pam R]

My thoughts are similar to all the others posts . .

My reference to Kosher style would indicate to the diners that all ingredients were Kosher, but the kitchen is not. 

I don't think using the term 'kosher style' to describe the food would indicate to the diners that the ingredients are kosher, but the restaurant isn't.

What most people mean by kosher style is really 'Jewish style'. If I saw kosher style, I would assume that the food wasn't kosher at all - but that you were cooking and serving Ashkenazie food (usually) made with non-kosher ingredients.

You must be careful before getting into this sort of thing. As others have stated, if a person is observant, they are not likely to eat in a restaurant that has some 'kosher style' menu items, when the kitchen is also producing other completely non-kosher items.

After years in the kosher food business, I'd also like to suggest that if there isn't a kosher restaurant within 50 miles, chances are there aren't enough people who care about kashrut in the area to support one.

There's no reason not to add matzoh ball soup to your menu - many people enjoy it - but if it's just to gain the kosher market, I'd rethink it.

[NancyH]

This thread reminds me of the old joke where a man who observres kashrut goes into a restaurant, noticing the painting of Moses in the window, takes a seat, and peruses the menu. He calls over the waiter when he sees the note in the menu that the food is "kosher style".

"Waiter" he asks, "what is this 'kosher style'? Food is either prepared in accordance with the Jewish dietary laws or it is not! What is this 'kosher style'?"

The waiter responds, "calm down, don't worry - we're all Jews here. There's even a picture of Moses hanging in the window!"

The customer rises to leave, and says, "I'd feel better if you were hanging in the window and Moses was waiting on the tables." [Rimshot]

Sorry - I held this in for as long as I could!