The Never Ending Shabbat Feast

Last night I had Shabbat dinner with a group of friends with a family in Haifa. I think it was the biggest meal I have ever eaten in my life. The food did not stop coming. Let me list the things off to you:

Fresh Challah
Matzah Ball Soup, with plenty of balls an soup nuts
Salad
Marinated Peppers
Roasted Vegetables
Rice
Couscous with Lentils
Chicken
Beef
Turkey
Chicken Pad Thai
Roasted Potatoes
Meatballs
Individual Apple Pies with Sherbet
Birthday Cake
Brownies
Coffee
Tea
Wine
Beer
Scotch

It was a feast. And all of the food was delicious. The beef was very tender, the challah was great, the vegetables were seasoned perfectly. The Scotch had to have been at least $50 a bottle. The coffee was great. The brownies were really chocolaty. Seriously, we were really spoiled.

There were 20 people there last night, and apparently this family does a large Shabbat meal twice a month. We found out how they do there shopping. They get together with their friends at 10pm every Thursday night at the supermarket, buy everything, and then spend all day Friday cooking. I'm amazed that someone could not only afford to do this twice a month, but also be able to make everything on Friday and have it taste good.

The family was very friendly and were another family of ex pat Britons. I practiced Hebrew with some of the kids and talked about Lockheed and the defense industry with the father, who works for Rafael, which is Lockheed's Israeli competitor. (Dad, I'm sorry to say, that's why you can't come to Israel. It's all business and you should be pissed)

The synagogue we went to was a little weird. Most of the men sitting in the men's section were reading newspapers during the service. That seemed a little odd. There was also a huge spider walking around. We're pretty sure he was Jewish. He coordinated his movement with the service. There was a mix of both modern Orthodox Jews and Chassidic Jews. One guy was davening harder than anyone I've ever seen. He looked like he was a Carlbach follower (dirty hippie), so either he's reached spiritual enlightenment or he's on something. Probably a mix of the two.

Today, I'm not sure what I'm doing. I'm still full from last night and I've been hanging out this morning listening to music. Tonight, I'm going to an art gallery opening. That will be a lot of fun.