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Spertus in the News
March 29, 2007
By Lorene Yue
Kosher cafe to open at new Spertus building
(Crain's) — The Spertus Institute of Jewish Studies and Wolfgang Puck Catering Inc. are bringing kosher back to downtown Chicago.
A kosher café run by the famous chef's catering company is set to open in November on the second floor of the new Spertus Institute building at 610 S. Michigan Ave., filling a dietary void created when the last kosher restaurant downtown closed roughly three years ago.
"It’s a big deal," Rabbi Ira Youdovin, executive vice-president of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, said of the Spertus Institute cafe. "Many people who keep kosher will have an option downtown and it's Wolfgang Puck. It's not chopped liver."
A final menu is being hammered out, but most items will be quick-casual ones, such as sandwiches, salads and possibly sushi, said Betsy Gomberg, director of institutional outreach for the Spertus Institute. The café is also in the process of having its kosher kitchen certified by the Rabbinical Council.
Ms. Gomberg said she doesn't expect the café to be a profit center for the Spertus Institute, but hopes catering and room-rental business will cover any losses. "It has always been important for us to offer kosher food," she said.
Los Angeles-based Wolfgangpuck Catering, which manages food and event services at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art and the Chicago History Museum, seemed to be a natural to manage the Spertus Institute's café. Mr. Puck married into a Jewish family and his children are Jewish. The celebrity chef also has hosted Passover Seders at his Spago restaurant.
"We look forward to working closely with Chicago suppliers to offer the freshest and finest ingredients, creating delicious food for everyone, whatever their culture, while also serving those who keep kosher and who live or work in Chicago or have the good fortune to visit this beautiful venue," Mr. Puck said in a statement.
The Spertus Institute is building its new $55-million facility just north of its current location at 618 S. Michigan Ave. The Jewish cultural studies center will feature a museum, library and 410-seat auditorium.
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