Chicken lemongrass ccoconut soup. Steak tartare. Cured sea trout with zucchini croutons.
These kosher delicacies were prepared using recipes from some of the most sought-after chefs in Washington area, none of whom operate kosher restaurants.
Chefs from Brasserie Beck, Lincoln, Thai Taste by Kob, Blue Duck Tavern and The Red Hen created a dinner menu for members of DC Eats, a kosher dining club that included five meals and a way to support the Yeshiva of Greater Washington.
The chefs provided a list of ingredients to Moti’s Grill in Rockville. The staff worked to make sure all the ingredients and cookware were kosher.
For a $180 basic membership, DC Eats provided diners a chance to taste some of the area’s best cuisine offered at nonkosher restaurants.
A basic membership allows two people to attend a total of five meals. For $360, the family plan, six people can participate. Those costs are only for membership; they do not include the price of the meal, estimated between $20 and $35 a person.
“I was searching for a way to have a fun, adventurous opportunity for the community,” said Rabbi Binyamin Sanders, director of development at the Yeshiva in Silver Spring, who designed the program. “It’s mostly about fun and doing something nice for the community.”
Lawrence Rossof, owner of Lincoln on Vermont Avenue NW, said he was excited to participate, especially because he is Jewish and grew up kosher.
“The kosher community in Washington has so few options. I feel like I’ve done a real mitzvah, a very good deed,” he said.
Rossof prepared a menu and handed the staff at Moti’s Grill a shopping list. Both Rossof and Lincoln’s chef, Demetrio Zaval, attended the May 6 dinner, the second of five for club members, and spent the evening talking to participants.
While Rossof said some ingredients had to be altered to be kosher, the changes weren’t major. Served that evening were chilled pea soup, spring salad, a choice of pan-seared rockfish or roasted ribeye, and ancient grain risotto with a baklava dessert that featured huckleberries, pistachio sorbet and honey brittle.
Max Prasermate, manager at Thai Taste by Kob in Wheaton, said he understood that participating in the fundraiser would not necessarily bring new customers to his restaurant. To him, “it was an education to see how far Thai food can go.”
Thai Taste was the third meal for DC Eats. The May 18 event featured a choice of steamed chilean sea bass or beef massaman curry.
In June, the fundraiser features Blue Duck Tavern on 24th Street NW, and The Red Hen on First Street NW.
Three of the five restaurants are listed in the “2015 100 Very Best Restaurants” by Washingtonian Magazine. n
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