A new initiative dedicated to the victims of the October 7 massacre in Israel aims to keep their memory alive by sharing their favorite dishes, Side Dish has learned.
The memorial to the 1,400 people killed by Hamas terrorists is the brainchild of the Israeli Culinary Association, called ASIF, which has created an online resource titled “A Place at the Table.”
Last week, the Israel-based nonprofit promoted its “Memorial Project” at a dinner in New York ahead of the one-year anniversary of the horrific attack, attended by the family of Shani Gabai, who was killed at the Nova music festival. .
Michelin-starred chef Gabriel Kreuzer has prepared a special feast at his eponymous restaurant near Bryant Park.
The menu includes spicy fish stew, a favorite of Ms. Gabai, 25, which she enjoyed while having Shabbat dinner with her family on Oct. 6 before departing for a fateful rave. Ta.
“She's like cooking, she's a spicy girl,” said her brother Abiel Gabai, 29, who was joined by her sister Nitzan and mother Michal.
“You can look at her photos and sing her songs, but experiencing her memories through food – eating and tasting what she loved – brings her to the table. It's a unique method.”
ASIF founder Naama Shefi also attended the dinner and described “A Place at the Table” as a “celebratory project.”
ASIF CEO Chico Menashe added that this collection of dishes will help heal the loved ones of the victims and the survivors.
“Families need to remember the memories and stories of their loved ones in order to move forward into the future,” Menashe told Side Dish at the intimate gathering.
“The idea was to reach out to families and share memories and stories of their loved ones through their favorite dishes with the Israeli public and a global audience.”
ASIF, which means harvest in Hebrew, is also sending a video team to victims' families who want to see how their meals are being prepared.
“We're going to do this for as long as the family wants,” Menashe said. “As more families contact us to join us, this project is turning into a national commemorative cookbook, which we hope will last a long time online, on Instagram, and as a physical memorial. Masu.”
Also in attendance at the dinner were former “Everybody Loves Raymond'' star Patricia Heaton and her husband, actor and producer David Hunt, as well as Cruiser's business partner Eben Doloros and his wife Elizabeth.
The two women, neither of whom are Jewish, founded 07C, a nonprofit organization that fights anti-Semitism at home and encourages Christians to protect their Jewish friends as wars continue to rage in the Middle East. Established.
