Uncategorized
The high price of kosher food takes a bite out of these NYC teens’ budgets
This article was produced as part of JTA’s Teen Journalism Fellowship, a program that works with Jewish teens around the world to report on issues that affect their lives.
(JTA) — On a recent Tuesday before his basketball team’s evening practice, sophomore Gabe R. and several of his friends headed to Grill Point NYC, a kosher Mediterranean restaurant on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Looking at the menu, Gabe was stunned by the prices: $26.50 for a bowl of schnitzel over rice, quinoa or salad. With no other kosher options open in the neighborhood, Gabe passed on dinner, practicing his ball-handling and shooting and ignoring his growling stomach.
Usually, though, he tries to find something he can afford. “I don’t like missing out. When all my friends go out for lunch, I don’t want to be the only one absent,” said Gabe. “I just look for less expensive items.” Most frequently this means ordering “a drink, dessert, or a side of fries,” said Gabe, who asked that his full name not to be used for fear of bullying over his financial situation at his Jewish high school.
Kosher food is hardly immune from the trend of rising inflation. In March 2022, inflation in the U.S. hit a 40-year high at an annual rate of 8.5%. Since then, the Federal Reserve has been aggressively raising interest rates to lower inflation, which, in January 2023, was 6.4% higher than January 2022. Although many Americans are struggling with food inflation, observant Jews bear an additional burden, as kosher meat already costs approximately 20% more than non-kosher meat, according to Slate Magazine.
Faced with high prices, many Jewish teens who keep kosher are limiting the frequency in which they patronize kosher restaurants. Some teens, primarily those who regard eating out as a key aspect of their social lives, have committed to ordering cheaper menu items when meeting friends. Others have eliminated eating out entirely. Such sacrifices have tangible effects on the relationship of kosher teens to Judaism. In addition to the crimp on their social lives, some teens say it is affecting their relationship with Judaism.
Yonatan Benichou, a junior at the Abraham Joshua Heschel School on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, said that he has recently stopped going out to eat at kosher restaurants with friends. “As a student with no income, I have no control over how much money I can spend. Kosher restaurants are very expensive,” he said.
Being kosher during a period of high inflation impacts Benichou’s social life. “Some of my non-kosher friends can eat a Big Mac [Combo] Meal at McDonalds” or a burger, fries and a drink for about $12 in New York City. “There is no such option for me. It’s frustrating,” said Benichou. At Burgers and Grill, a popular kosher eatery on the Upper West Side, a similar combination meal starts at $18.
This new reality has altered Benichou’s relationship to Judaism. “I didn’t choose my denomination. The truth is that I can’t get a cheaper lunch with my [non-kosher] friends because of some random laws in the Torah,” he said. “This makes me more resentful of Orthodox Judaism.” Primarily, the prohibitive cost of a kosher restaurant meal has led Benichou to question the validity of mitzvot for which the Torah does not give a specific reason, called “chukim.” Traditional sources include the rules of kosher food among these “non-rational” regulations.
There are few cheap, kosher fast-food options, in large part because of the wholesale price of kosher food. While a pound of chicken drumsticks at Park East Kosher Butcher in NYC costs $9.98 — $9.30 a year ago — a pound of non-kosher Springer Mountain Farms Chicken Drumsticks, sold on FreshDirect, is $2.79. The kosher fast food restaurant Holy Schnitzel offers a regular chicken sandwich, coined the “Holy Toasty,” for $15.99 at its Upper West Side location. Chick-fil-A’s classic chicken sandwich is $6.29 at their Upper East Side location.
But the higher cost of kosher meat is not the sole reason for the lack of kosher fast food restaurants, said Dani Klein, founder of YeahThatsKosher, a guide to kosher restaurants and travel. Since fast food restaurants need to sell a high volume to turn a profit, the pandemic — which “killed the volume game,” according to Klein — meant that kosher restaurants could succeed only if they had high profit margins. “Every restaurant will choose the best way to maximize its profits,” said Klein. “Fancy restaurants can charge a lot more than the cost of their products by virtue of the fact that they are offering an upscale experience.”
Hunter Bernhardt, also a junior at the Heschel High School, said that he rarely goes out to eat with his friends due to inflation. Living in Riverdale in the Bronx, getting to school in Manhattan is often costly. “Everything, from gas prices to Uber fares, have increased with inflation. I can’t spend too much on expensive food when transportation is my priority,” Bernhardt said.
Although inflation has altered his spending, Bernhardt said that his relationship to Judaism has not been affected. “I am grateful to live in a place and attend a Jewish day school where kosher foods are accessible to me.” Indeed, students at the Heschel School, which gave three times more financial aid in the 2022-23 school year than a decade prior, have access to kosher breakfast and lunch every school day for no additional fee on top of tuition. Bernhardt also said that going out to eat isn’t that important to his social life. “Many of my friends aren’t kosher anyways. We do other things, like play basketball in Central Park and chill at a friend’s house.”
—
The post The high price of kosher food takes a bite out of these NYC teens’ budgets appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
Uncategorized
Iran Says It Has Sent Response to US Peace Proposal
People walk past a billboard with a graphic design about the Strait of Hormuz on a building, in Tehran, Iran, May 4, 2026. Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
Iran has sent its response to a US proposal for peace talks to end the war, Iranian state media reported on Sunday, as two ships were allowed to pass through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.
The response focused on ending the war on all fronts, especially Lebanon, and on the safety of shipping through the strait, Iranian state TV said, without indicating how or when the vital waterway might reopen.
It followed a US proposal to end fighting before starting talks on more contentious issues, including Iran’s nuclear program.
Pakistan, which has been mediating talks over the war, forwarded the Iranian response to the US, a Pakistani official said. There was no immediate US comment.
Despite a month-old ceasefire in the conflict and after some 48 hours of relative calm, hostile drones were detected over several Gulf countries on Sunday, underlining the threat still facing the region.
Still, the QatarEnergy-operated carrier Al Kharaitiyat passed safely through the strait and was heading for Pakistan’s Port Qasim, according to data from shipping analytics firm Kpler, the first Qatari vessel carrying liquefied natural gas to cross the strait since the US and Israel started the war on February 28.
Sources said earlier the transfer, which offered a modicum of relief to Pakistan after a wave of power blackouts caused by a halt to gas imports, had been approved by Iran to build confidence with Pakistan and with Qatar, another mediator.
In addition, a Panama-flagged bulk carrier bound for Brazil that had previously attempted to transit the strait on May 4 passed through, using a route designated by Iran’s armed forces, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.
TRUMP UNDER PRESSURE TO END WAR AHEAD OF CHINA VISIT
With US President Donald Trump due to visit China this week, there has been mounting pressure to draw a line under the war, which has ignited a global energy crisis and poses a growing threat to the world economy.
Tehran has largely blocked non-Iranian shipping through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, which before the war carried one-fifth of the world’s oil supply and has emerged as one of the central pressure points in the war.
Addressing whether combat operations against Iran were over, Trump said in remarks aired on Sunday: “They are defeated, but that doesn’t mean they’re done.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the war was not over because there was “more work to be done” to remove enriched uranium from Iran, dismantle enrichment sites and address Iran’s proxies and ballistic missile capabilities.
The best way to remove the enriched uranium would be through diplomacy, Netanyahu said in an interview with CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” without ruling out removing it by force.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a social media post that Iran would “never bow down to the enemy” and would “defend national interests with strength”.
Despite diplomatic efforts to break a deadlock, the threat to shipping lanes and the economies of the region remained high.
On Sunday, the United Arab Emirates said it intercepted two drones coming from Iran, while Qatar condemned a drone attack that hit a cargo ship coming from Abu Dhabi in its waters. Kuwait said its air defences had dealt with hostile drones that entered its airspace.
Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the strait since a ceasefire began: the UAE came under renewed attack on Friday and sporadic clashes were reported between Iranian forces and US vessels in the strait.
Clashes have also continued in southern Lebanon between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, despite a U.S.-brokered ceasefire announced on April 16.
Hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah reignited on March 2 when the Lebanese group opened fire after Tehran came under US-Israeli attack. The latest talks between Israel and Lebanon are due to start in Washington on May 14.
INTERNATIONAL MISSION PREPARATIONS DRAW IRANIAN WARNING
Though Washington imposed its own blockade on Iranian vessels last month, Tehran has taken its time before responding to calls to end a war that surveys show is unpopular with US voters facing ever-higher gasoline prices.
The US has also found little international support, with NATO allies refusing calls to send ships to open the Strait of Hormuz without a full peace deal and an internationally mandated mission.
Britain, which has been working with France on a proposal to ensure safe transit through the strait once the situation stabilizes, said on Saturday it was deploying a warship to the Middle East in preparation for such a mission, following a similar move by France.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on social media that any stationing of British, French or other warships around the Strait of Hormuz under the pretext of “protecting shipping” would be an escalation and would be met by force.
In response, French President Emmanuel Macron said France was standing ready to help the international mission, but “we have never envisaged a military deployment to re-open Hormuz.”
Uncategorized
Jonathan Pollard Tells i24news: US-Israel Alliance Is ‘Finished’; He Is Entering Israeli Politics
Jonathan Pollard, a former US Navy intelligence officer convicted of spying for Israel, exits following a hearing at the Manhattan Federal Courthouse, in New York City, May 17, 2017. Photo: Reuters / Brendan McDermid / File.
i24 News – Jonathan Pollard, the former US Navy intelligence analyst who served 30 years in an American prison for spying for Israel, told i24NEWS in an exclusive interview Saturday that he is entering Israeli politics, declaring that every party currently sitting in the Knesset has “blood on its hands” from the October 7 massacre and that the US-Israel alliance is “finished.”
Speaking via Zoom on Sunday with i24NEWS Senior Correspondent Owen Alterman, Pollard announced he would run with a small party that has yet to clear the electoral threshold, saying he could not in good conscience join any existing Knesset party. “Every single legacy party that is in this Knesset bears a responsibility for the disaster that occurred on October 7,” he said. “The misconception started long before. And it was the mismanagement and the lack of oversight by the civilian governments that allowed them to get away with this disaster.”
Pollard was pointed in his criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, dismissing suggestions that he owed the premier gratitude for his release. “God brought me home because it was a miracle,” he said, crediting his late wife Esther, Ron Dermer, and Sheldon and Miriam Adelson for fighting for his freedom. “Bibi, you know, he let my wife almost starve to death on the streets of Jerusalem before he deigned to see her.” He also rejected Netanyahu’s claim that Israel had achieved a “war of rebirth,” saying, “We haven’t defeated our enemies. There isn’t one enemy, one of the fronts, of the multi-fronts, that has been decisively defeated.”
Pollard reserved some of his sharpest words for Israel’s ultra-Orthodox political parties, describing Shas as “a criminal enterprise” and United Torah Judaism as “a shakedown operation.” “The problem with the Haredim is that they haven’t gotten out of the ghetto, the shtetl,” he said, directing his criticism at the leadership rather than the community. “They don’t seem to understand that when you live in this country as a citizen, when you take money from the government, you owe the government something.” He called IDF soldiers serving hundreds of days in combat “sacred heroes” and said it was “disgusting” and “insulting” for Haredi leadership to equate military service with serving in a foreign army.
On the United States, Pollard was equally blunt, calling President Donald Trump “very dangerous” and saying he did not know what Trump’s “North Star” or values were. When Alterman noted Trump was widely popular in Israel, Pollard replied, “That just shows you how stupid a lot of people in this country really are.” He said Trump was “pro-money” rather than antisemitic and accused Trump advisers Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, whom he called “Tweedledum and Tweedledee,” of being “only interested in one thing, and that’s their bank account.” He also accused the Trump administration of deliberately preventing Israel from achieving decisive victories against Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran. “They don’t want us to win anything decisively,” he said.
Pollard said the US-Israel alliance had fundamentally broken down, predicting that the next American election would offer Israel “a very bad choice between bad and worse.” “This alliance is finished,” he said flatly. When asked whether his entry into politics was more about speaking truth to power than actually seeking office, Pollard said he was prepared to serve “in whatever capacity is appropriate,” and left voters with a direct message: “If they want to make sure that there is never again an October 7, you better vote for someone like me rather than Bibi Netanyahu or Naftali Bennett or Gadi Eisenkot.”
Uncategorized
UAE Says Air Defenses Dealt with Two Drones Coming from Iran
Drones are seen at a site at an undisclosed location in Iran, in this handout image obtained on April 20, 2023. Photo: Iranian Army/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
The United Arab Emirates’ air defenses dealt with two drones coming from Iran on Sunday, the Defense Ministry said, the latest in renewed attacks on the oil-rich Gulf country.
The UAE has reported being attacked in the past days by Iran after four weeks of relative calm since a ceasefire in the Iran war was announced by the United States.
Iran has denied carrying out operations against the UAE in recent days, yet it warned of a “crushing response” if any actions were launched from the UAE against it.
The attacks prompted the UAE to shift to remote learning for schools last week, but authorities said on Sunday that in-person learning would resume from Monday.