A Jewish Culinary Renaissance Is Expanding The Definition Of Kosher Food

By CNN
Posted on 12/13/21 | News Source: CNN

Serengeti's Lara Franks: "Almost anything can have a kosher translation."

Leonardo Nourafchan wanted to do something different. After trying out jobs in real estate, the California native knew he wanted to break into the food industry, starting with catering from his home and creating blogs.

He worked long hours in the kitchens of New York restaurants, including Mike's Bistro and Alenbi, then finally opened his Israeli restaurant Charcoal Grill & Bar in Los Angeles.

Nourafchan snuck Mexican-influenced dishes -- inspired by the area's culinary scene -- onto his kosher menu. These included lamb shawarma tacos, which he said were incredibly popular. The restaurant shut down at the beginning of the pandemic, but by May 2020, Nourafchan was testing a new kosher Mexicali concept out of his former meat supplier's kitchen.

Lenny's Casita, a kosher Mexican restaurant, officially launched in July 2021.

"It's kind of like a cross between a kosher Chipotle and Taco Bell, which are the things that I used to eat as a kid," Nourafchan told CNN.

Nourafchan said his street food-inspired menu -- which boasts carne asado tacos with pico de gallo, chipotle honey wings and Mediterranean pitas called arayis -- is part of a larger "kosher food revolution" happening nationwide. In cities such as New York, Chicago, Miami and Baltimore, restaurants are redefining both kosher and Jewish food more than ever, pulling from traditionally non-kosher cuisines such as Chinese, Japanese, French and Italian.