Friday, October 20, 2006

My once favorite kosher restaurant

Not quite a meme but whoever wants to follow the theme started by Soccer Dad...
Please send your links to me for the Kosher Cooking Carnival.

...Way back when, in early 1967, I was doing my best to keep kosher when out of my parents' home, since I had no control over their kitchen. It was complicated.

Among my NCSY, pro-Israel and Jewish activities, I was a dancer in Leah Wiener's NCSY Israeli Folk Dance Group, and we appeared in the Israel Folk Dance Festival, directed by Fred Berk. Later on, I inherited the position from her and led it in 1969 and 1970.

So, what does that have to do with kosher restaurants?
Simple, the day of the performances was long, and we had to eat. We performed in Carnegie Hall, not bad for my "portfolio," and there was a kosher restaurant around the corner, "I. and M." The initials stood for "Izzy and Moshe," if I'm not mistaken. It was small, served meat, had a few tables and a counter.

The following summer I worked in Manhattan and took an evening ulpan a couple of nights a week. So I ate at "I & M," food was good, not too expensive, the staff was friendly, and I became one of the "regulars." That fall I began studying in Stern College, and when I wanted a treat, I went there for dinner. Sometimes I'd arrive close to closing, and they would just serve me whatever they had left. The third guy working there was the "waiter." When he went on vacation the owners decided that I should go out with his nephew (who subbed for him,) which I did, and later on even with his nephew's friend. Nothing came of it. I continued popping in for a meal as the year went on.

Towards the end of the school year, my husband to be, (but of course we didn't know it at the time) asked me out. We were going to see a movie and needed to eat dinner first. He wasn't familiar with the kosher restaurant scene, since he lived in a kosher home. I suggested that we go to "I & M." We did, hd a nice meal, but then the waiter.... served us separate checks!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, that's not very romantic. I've never had a waiter do that. Some of my students are waitresses who tell me couples are constantly pulling out two credit cards and splitting checks.

I must be getting old or something.

Batya said...

True, but he did pay for both, and the waiter got the message.