Conference taveng::bagels

    
    
    A very thoughtful note indeed. Travelling to the area would
    certainly be infinitely more pleasant if one didn't have to
    subsist on potato chips and Coke.
    
    There are kosher restaurants in Massachusetts, which I'm sure
    will be willing to fill the need. However, kosher requirements
    are not simple, and therefore an observant Jew should be kept
    as a point-of-contact. For instance, the supplier must be
    under valid supervision, and a store which has such super-
    vision today may not in a few months. The food must also be
    sealed, and be able to be warmed up without being opened.
    
    I'll be happy to make myself available as a POC if no one in Mass.
    volunteers. 
    
    Jem
    
    

I agree strongly with Jem about a point of contact.  There are indeed
Kosher restaurants and caterers within serving range of Maynard and
someone with first hand knowledge and availability to Maynard would
be necessary to keep things straight.

The new training center is at PKO, yes?  There is at least one observant
DECie at PKO.  He might be welling to help out.  If he is not currently
following BAGELS, I can contact him off line.  If he is not available,
there are certainly others in the general area who might cover the food
issues.

As far as availability of Orthodox minyanim, that is a little tougher.
Maynard is in the wastelands (as far as Orthodoxy is concerned  8^{).

Gav

This is also at least an observant Jew in the Mill !!

I did not check personnaly but I heard that the Butcherie (a kosher food 
store Harvard Street - Brookline) sells sealed plates.

An other caterer you may contact is "Catering by Andrew" also on Harvard Street
in Brookline.


/Philippe

    There is also a kosher butcher in Framingham (Hurvitz - nice people)
    who may be able to help.
    
    /Charlotte

    You could also contact Rubin's Delicatessen on Harvard Street in Brookline.  
    They havean extensive line of take-out products (just about everything
    they serve).  
    
    I'm a strict vegetarian and find it rather disheartening that after all
    these years a caterer to a major corporation can state that they don't
    know how to prepare a vegetarian meal!  Dont' they realize that
    spaghetti with a meatless sauce is vegetarian?  What about a plate of
    beautifully steamed vegetables with a spicy dipping sauce and a side of
    brown rice or some other grain?  How difficult could that be to
    prepare?  Or stir-fried veggies with noodles/rice????
    
    Gita
    

    
    I have started to do some research. I contacted the Rebbie's Office at
    Congregation Beth Pincchas. They referred me to two caterer's Ruth's
    Kitchen and another alternate. Both caterer's reps. said they have the
    equipment to prepare fast frozen meals that should last several weeks
    frozen. I have essentially made myself the initial point of contact by
    starting this note. If people can assist me by entering suggestions for
    sources of food I will collect and publish them. 
    
    The main problem is that outside of getting Tobin's to stock some in
    the cafeteria freezer the problem still exists for suppers. (If they
    do in fact ever stock breakfast and luncheon entrees.)  Both of the
    caterers I found and Rubin's mentioned previously are a bit of a hike
    from Maynard. Is the need great enough to warrant a discussion with
    the nearby Synagogues to encourage some arrangements in addition to 
    Tobins'to prehaps use their kitchen three nights a week etc etc?  
    
    Let's start by helping me with two pieces of information. 1) How many
    people that require kosher food cometo Maynard? How often? For How
    long? You know who you are. 2) Please add names, addresses, and phone numbers for resturants,
    markets, and butchers.
    
    /doug
    

Doug,

I was talking about this with my wife, who works at PKO, over the weekend.  She
raised an interesting question.  Where will Ed Services be recommending for out
of town visitors to stay when taking training at PKO?  I know that "near by"
lodging is a problem in Maynard and the suggested hotels can have an impact on
the suggestions for other issues.  For customer training, does DEC make the
hotel arrangements, just give suggestions or do nothing at all?  If the former,
then you may need to check with the area hotels about providing kosher food
service.  If you expect the customers to take breakfast and dinner at PKO, then
you have a different set of issues.

I can't give you any better suggestions than Ruth's or Andrew's (who I would
guess was the other suggestion, though I could be wrong).  The only one that
is a little closer is Wald's Food in Newton (they are listed).  All of them
would probably deliver (it would add to the cost I'm sure).

I don't think there is any way to get a good estimate for the number of people
"coming to Maynard".  First of all, training is an intermittent thing at best.
Second, we are not likely to be in a position to judge external demand.  Third,
your past history might not reflect demand, because if the customers were not
made aware that help was available they might not ask.

Gav

    How about addressing the problem from a different angle?  
    
    What housing resources are available to students?  If units with
    kitchenettes are available, the student could at least store cold food
    in the refrigerator and prepare salads using disposable plates and
    flatware.  The student might be able to use the microwave oven.
    
    The kosher experts would have to advise about details.  Could a
    non-kosher cutting knife be used on fruits, vegetables, bread, or
    cheese?
    
    Could a non-kosher microwave be used to heat a kosher tv dinner?
    
    What about hot beverages such as coffee?
    
    Next resource:
    
    A local supermarket which sells kosher foods?
    
    Another idea:
    
    If a set of kosher utensils is needed (such as a knife, can opener,
    cutting board, etc.) maybe Ed Services could store it in a box to be
    borrowed by kosher students.
    
    Laura

    How about recommending housing closer to Boston (eg Newton) where
    kosher restaurants are nearby.  How long would it take to drive to
    Maynard? The rush hour traffic is mostly inbound, isn't it?
    
    Laura 

The other caterer that the Bostoner Rebbe's recommended was probably
either Kosher Mart or Haim's Deli, definitely not Andrew's.  If you're
going to try to institutionalize kosher meals, you should use only caterers
that (almost) everybody will hold by.  Currently they're Milk Street,
Haim's Deli, Cafe Shalom, Ruth's Kitchen, and Kosher Mart.  All the others
are under the Vaad, and many people don't hold by the Vaad.

>The other caterer that the Bostoner Rebbe's recommended was probably
>either Kosher Mart or Haim's Deli, definitely not Andrew's.  If you're

Oops, I forgot that Andrew switched to the Vaad.  I agree with Gerald's
comments about using the most widely accepted certifications.  Those
accept a Vaad certification will accept the others, but not necessarily
the other way around.

Gav

.9 is absolutely right in suggesting that visitors stay where there is more of
a Jewish presence.  There are towns within commuting distance of Maynard that
have both kosher restaurants and a choice of synagogues.

As for meals in the middle of the day, getting food through company cafeterias
is not the way to go.  Does anyone really expect Tobin's to go through all that
is necessary to put their facilities under acceptable rabbinical supervision?
And will most shomer kashrut visitors accept anything less?  I think that it is
more realistic to suggest that people buy food at the supermarket, prepare
their lunches in their hotel rooms, and bring these lunches with them when they
come in to Maynard.

re .12:

Hotels (and Tobins) should be able to provide airline-style meals.
If they follow the instructions on the package, there are no kashrus
problems.  Of course, you may not want to actually *eat* the things.

    Incidentally Bedford may have seemed much closer to Brookline or Newton
    than Maynard but that is not all that true. My commute from Cambridge
    to trainign in Bedford was 18-19 miles. Cambridge to Maynard is about
    23 miles. At least for evening meals people will not be that much worse
    off than they were in Bedford.
    
    yf
    

The PKO cafeteria manager has contacted the two people the Rebbie
reccomended. One of them has invited him to their place on Sunday
and has asked a Rabbi to talk with them about procedures. I think
that this fellow is showing a lot of willingess to 'do the right
thing' and am personally pleased with his effort. They are also
ordering some meals to have on hand starting next week.

/doug

I think the idea of sealed hot meals being available with advance 
notice will be acceptable to the most rigorous observers of Kashruth.  
Most of my Kosher friends will eat in regular restaurants but will 
only order fish or a vegetarian dish.  There is a small group  of 
observers who absolutely will not eat anything prepared in a 
regular kitchen.  For them, get the frozen sealed meals, heat them 
sealed, and let them uncover them.  That way, they can be sure 
there was no contamination of other food in their meal.  

With a kitchenette, you cannot guarantee that the utensils remain 
"Kosher" from visitor to visitor.  You would have to perform 
purification rites after each visitor and that is asking too 
much from DEC.

Sara

re .16:

Airline-style meals are pretty awful.  Supposedly the kosher ones are better
than the regular airline meals, but I find it hard to imagine that anything
could be much worse.  I've ordered kosher meals at conferences, only to
receive the exact same thing at every meal.  I think it's a great idea
to have locally-prepared meals (which would presumably be sealed and frozen
just like the Schreiber and Wilton meals).  Heavyweight plastic utensils
are fine.  As I've mentioned, it's important to adhere to a standard that's
acceptable to everyone, and going to the sources that the Bostoner Rebbe
recommends is the way to do it.

    Two VERY good health food stores in the area:
    
    Concord Spice & Grain
    93 Thoreau Street
    Concord, Mass.
    (508) 369-1535
    (800) 244-1535
    
    The Natural Gourmet
    98 Commonwealth Ave
    Concord, Mass.
    (508) 371-7573
    
    The Natural Gourmet has wonderful Vegetarian luncheon specials & I 
    believe they do some catering.
    
    Regards,
    
    Sandy