A new kosher restuarant has opened in the heart of Moscow on 2nd Tverskaya-Yamskaya Street. The teahouse, called “Seven-Forty,” will feature Bukharian Jewish food.
The opening of the restaurant was attended by the President of the World Congress of Bukharian Jews and the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS, Lev Leviev, as well as Chief Rabbi of Russia Berel Lazar, President of the FJC Russia Alexander Boroda, and Rabbis David Yushuvaev, David Mondshine, and Ari Aminov.
Of course, the restaurant’s owner, Ben Binyaminov, the President of the Congress of Bukharian Jews of Russia and the CIS, was in attendance, as well as many other leading figures of the Jewish community in the capital city also turned out to take part in the celebration.
While Moscow has always favored the cuisine of the various peoples of Central Asia, it has never before had the opportunity to enjoy traditional Bukharian Jewish dishes.
Now, kosher patrons will have the pleasure of enjoying many distinct and delicious Bukharian Jewish foods as well as the more common Central Asian fare such as shish kebab, pilaf, and lagman. The restaurant hired eight chefs who hail from Tashkent.
“I only intended to come for half an hour to congratulate our communities, but I ended up staying for much longer,” commented Mr. Leviev, who noted that the Bukharian Jews of Moscow now have a kosher eating establishment that caters to their unique tastes and culture.
The opening of Seven-Forty included live music by Igor Dabakarov, a talented singer who traveled especially from Ulyanovsk, and performed Bukharian and Ashkenazi Jewish songs.
The restaurant’s change-over to kosher was done according to the strictest standards and was supervised by Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries.
