The 11th Annual Jewish Food Festival came to Richmond’s Weinstein Jewish Community Center on the 14th and 15th of January, bringing good music, good food, and wonderful people. This festival featured all different kinds of traditional Jewish food, with various vegan and vegetarian options as well.
At the festival, you could choose from 4 different kind of dinner plates: brisket, chicken, corned beef, and stuffed cabbage. I myself tried the Brisket dinner plate, and being as I’ve never had Jewish-made food, I didn’t know what to expect, yet it turned out to actually be really good. The brisket itself was very tender and tasted amazing.
The sides I got with the brisket plate were stuffed cabbage and potato latkes. Encased in the stuffed cabbage was beef and rice, smothered in a tomato-like sauce. Now, I’ve personally never been one to favor cabbage much, let alone stuffed cabbage, so I was initially planning to just leave it on my plate and be done with it.
Yet, curiosity got the best of me–and it was a decision I’m glad I made. The stuffed cabbage was amazing, leaving me with a much different impression of cabbage then I had previously held. The potato latkes were fried potato pancakes, and let me say they might have rivaled the pancakes people are more accustomed to like egg-battered pancakes we traditionally eat, with how great they tasted.
What’s a food festival if you don’t get pictures of the food as well, right? So right here is what you could’ve gotten in the brisket dinner plate (what I had), a beef brisket, accompanied by two sides of potato latkes (fried potato pancakes) and a stuffed cabbage. With almost every dinner plate also came an additional side of applesauce as well. Potato latkes seemed to be a popular side, as many people seemed to have some on their plates.
Volunteers prepared and served all of the food, including falafel, a dish that contains balls of chickpea batter with salad in a wrap. Now seeing falafel being made, honestly made me contemplate if getting the brisket dinner plate was the best choice, because let me tell you, the falafel was looking quite delectable.
Many of the desserts were homemade. So mostly it was up to the person as to what deserts were brought. Nothing specific was required I was told. Being as I only really saw scones and brownies left to pick from, I’m assuming the other desserts were too good to be left for later. Although, it was pretty obvious that unlike the other foods brought and being cooked, that the desserts didn’t have to be Jewish.
After walking around and seeing the food they had I was able to sit down and talk to one of the guests at the festival. “I’ve been to the festival a few times now and I’ve always loved coming because of the environment and the atmosphere of the festival,” she said. “More and more people seem to show up each year, from various places around Virginia.”
Along with the food, there were many vendors set up in a different area as well. Among the vendors were Bahashem Siao Co., who sold various kinds of self-care necessities, and another Manduka Moon, who specialize in handcrafted jewelry and unique accessories.
A nice addition to the amazing atmosphere and food at the festival was the live music. Klezm’Or’Ami’m’s performance was splendid. This group included a violinist, two drummers, a guitarist, and a clarinetist. Their music matched the atmosphere so perfectly–a very soothing and uplifting sound. All of this made for an amazing festival, and an all around great environment to be in.
