Kosher S.O.S

Shalom,

I recently became engaged and we want our Chabad rabbi to perform the ceremony. However, we wish to be married outside of our home area (Inland Empire). In order for my rabbi to perform the wedding, we must serve kosher food (we do not keep kosher ourselves).

I don’t know where to begin to search for locations in or around Los Angeles that are certified kosher and/or locations that allow outside kosher caterers.

Any help? Todah!

Marc

We get asked this question a lot. Now, thanks to the Web, there’s an easy answer. Visit our website, www.jewishjournal.com and click on the button for “Kosher Eats.” This links to The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles’ comprehensive Web site (www.jewishla.org), which features an updated list of kosher restaurants and caterers in the greater Los Angeles area.

You can help keep the list up-to-date by sending the Webmaster updates on the status and contact numbers of the restaurants.

Another good place for a recommendation: Kosher butchers and suppliers. Businesses like Kosher Club and Doheny Meats in Los Angeles, and Ventura Kosher in Encino, often provide restauarnts and hotels with the raw materials for a feast. Ask them who they prefer.

Finally, don’t neglect non-kosher establishments that offer kosher catering. There are many, including the Beverly Hills Hotel, the Four Seasons Beverly Hills, the Mariott in Woodland Hills and the Century Plaza. These places offer certified kosher catering in luxurious surroundings. Check in the pages of The Journal (see our Wedding supplement this month) and the Yellow Pages for specific hotels.

Good luck, and congratulations.

I would appreciate it if you could tell me what breaking of the glass during the wedding means.

R. Silver

There are several reasons given for this custom. The most common is that the breaking of the glass reminds us of the destruction of the Temple, a symbol of mourning at the time of utmost joy. Another explanation is that it is a superstition designed to allay evil spirits. A more anthropological – and much less discussed – one is that it symbolizes the taking of the bride’s virginity after the ceremony. But there’s another you’re more likely to hear a rabbi explain: That any marriage, though it be entered into with the fullness of love and the best wishes of the assembled, is still a fragile thing, whose success can never be taken for granted. Of course, there are many who maintain the breaking symbolizes the start of cocktails and hors d’oeuvres.