This week, Zagat editor Billy Lyons explores what it means to be a kosher certified restaurant by visiting Reserve Cut, a modern kosher steakhouse in the Financial District. He filed the following report.
Though the morning bell may signal the start of the day at the New York Stock Exchange on Broad Street, at nearby Reserve Cut, the arrival of the rabbi indicates it's time to get started.
"Kosher laws go back to the bible. The five books of Moses, it tells us about slaughtering animals, about not having milk together. Rabbis through the generations have adapted" noted Rabbi Dov Schreier, Rabbinic Coordinator for the Orthodox Union, the organization responsible for ensuring kosher standards are upheld.
Though interpretation of those laws has changed throughout the years, the common thread has remained the same: the day cannot start without the rabbi's arrival. From unlocking the gate so staff can gain access to the restaurant to turning on the burners so cooks can begin to prepare dishes, the rabbi is an essential part of Reserve Cut's daily operations."At the restaurant, we require a mashgiach (rabbinic supervisor) from opening to closing. The misconception is that the rabbi comes to bless the food. The last thing we do is bless the food. Yea, after we check and we investigate and verify everything is okay, then we give our blessings, we don't bless the food" noted Schreier.
"When the cattle is slaughtered, it's supervised from that moment until it gets here. Once it is here, the rabbi takes over that process, and makes sure that it comes with two seals and it doesn't leave the house (restaurant) when the meat is open" noted Reserve Cut's owner Albert Allaham, whose butcher shop in Brooklyn provides all of the meat to the restaurant.
"Every delivery, every invoice has to get the rabbi's signature" added chef Marco Arnold. Arnold and his team view the rabbi as a collaborative partner. While the rabbi is checking for quality and execution of Kosher standards, the chef is concentrating on making sure dishes are going out in a timely fashion and all food inventory is accounted for well in advance. Occasionally, the rabbi can find fault with a delivery (he once found a garden snake in a box of produce), which means the products can't be used. This extra security blanket ensures the chef and his team are always well prepared in advance. Running out of food is not an issue here.
Overall, the extra quality and care to ensure all produce, seafood, meat, and wine are in accordance with the laws of the bible as well as good taste translate to a thoughtful and delicious dining experience.