From the Jewish News Weekly of Northern California | by: Laura Rumpf | Friday July 18, 2008
Keeping kosher on vacation might be a lot easier — and tastier — for Jews from all over with the help of a new blog and dining review source for kashrut-observant world travelers.
Destinations from Reykjavik to Stockholm to Bangkok — places you wouldn’t necessarily expect to be kosher-friendly — have all been included on Yeah, That’s Kosher (www.yeahthatskosher.com).
The blog notes that its authors have “navigated the globe” searching for quality kosher dining, Jewish community activities and general travel highlights.
Dani Klein, 25, was inspired to create Yeah, That’s Kosher in May 2008 after many difficult experiences trying to find kosher food outside of his home in New York City.
“I love traveling … but it’s often difficult,” explained Klein, the site’s founder and CEO. “Resources [for kosher travelers] were lacking on the Web.”
Other sites, he said, provided information on kosher options in foreign countries, but did not offer personal testimonials and gave readers little idea of what they could expect from airlines, hotels and restaurants in the places they planned to visit.
The goal of Yeah, That’s Kosher, in contrast, is to provide full editorial reviews of vacation spots, which are written by Klein and his sizeable network of Jewish connections. Each blog entry includes three sections: kosher information, general tourist information and Jewish information (including synagogues, Chabad houses and local minyans).
There are photos of the spots the travelers describe, and a world map with the destinations the blog’s authors have covered tagged in blue. Users can also search for travel tips by region or category.
“We want this site to be useful for the Jewish community,” Klein said. “We want people to be able to find what they’re looking for.”
Klein said his plan is to continue increasing the scope of the site as he scours uncharted territory in search of the most appetizing — or any — kosher meals out there.
In his travels to date, Klein can attest to some pleasant surprises on his quest for kosher food, as well as a number of disappointments.
He was pleased with the kosher burgers he sampled in Melbourne, Australia, but lamented having only vegetarian options in a majority of Scandinavia, due to the lack of a visible Jewish population.
Yeah, That’s Kosher is a side dish for Klein, who is a graduate student going for a master’s degree in business at Baruch College in New York. He is also the campus director of the Israel advocacy organization StandWithUS, from which he gleans writers who contribute to his Web site.
Two months ago, Klein was named one of the “36 under 36: The Next Wave of Jewish Innovators” by the New York Jewish Week, which cited him in its “pro-Israel advocacy” category of people making a difference in the Jewish community.
