WJW Staff

There were no big surprises in this year's second annual survey of the Washington-area kosher community. The Washington DC Jewish Community Center's JCC Cafe was once again chosen as the best overall kosher restaurant.

The other two big winners were also repeats from last year: Goldberg's Bagels for best overall kosher bakery and Simply Kosher, formerly known as Kosher by the Case, for best overall kosher store. Both are in Rockville

Released last week, the survey was conducted by Kosher Community Surveys LLC. This year's feedback came from 451 local participants, up from 376 in last year's inaugural survey.

Other establishments that fared well with local consumers, receiving winning or runner-up ratings in one of the subcategories (service quality, environment, selection, quality of preparation and price) were KosherMart in Rockville; Kosher Pastry Oven and its cafe, Pita Plus, Shalom's and Shaul's, all in Silver Spring; and Dunkin Donuts, which has several kosher franchises in the Washington area.

The survey is the brainchild of Silver Spring resident Neil Rosenbaum, a marketing and business developer for Arnold and Porter law office in the District. Rosenbaum called Kosher Community Surveys LLT, of which he is president, a "personal project" that started last year in the Washington area and this year expanded to include three new cities: Baltimore, Boston and Philadelphia. He hopes to keep the list of cities growing.

This year's Washington-area survey took place in the fall. In addition to alerting previous participants, Rosenbaum contacted synagogues and kosher establishments, asking them to encourage their members and customers to participate in the survey. He also sent out information on several local listservs.

Although he admits that the survey is not scientific, Rosenbaum believes that the results are "a reflection of the community," and that "the people's responses are thoughtful."

The format of this year's report is different from last year's. Instead of a five-page summary, the 2006 report is 32 pages long and presents more statistical information, including detailed results for each establishment. Rosenbaum also elected not to include in this year's survey a section on people's attitudes on the Vaad Harabanim Rabbinical Council of Greater Washington, the Orthodox body that gives kosher approval locally.

A summary of comments about each establishment is also included, addressing specific issues, good ‹ such as convenience and helpful staff ‹ and bad ‹ such as inconsistency of stock and lack of cleanliness.

By standardizing the survey and report and by expanding the project to other cities, Rosenbaum hopes that the Kosher Community Surveys (www.kosher-community-surveys.com) will become a "resource that will always be there for the community and for visitors to the community," and a way to encourage the kosher establishments to give their customers what they want.

He's already planning changes for next year's survey. Instead of a "price" category in the bakery section, there will be a "value" section. He also welcomes any suggestions for improvements to the survey and report.

And Rosenbaum is looking for ways to increase participation. "The more the merrier," he said.