The Fooderie, West Orange’s new kosher marketplace, celebrated its grand opening on Sunday, Dec. 18 with day-long festivities. The morning began with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, where The Fooderie proprietor Shlomo Gornish was joined by outgoing West Orange Mayor Robert Parisi, incoming West Orange mayor Susan McCartney, local community rabbis, members of the city council, Fooderie staff and others.
While The Fooderie had its soft opening at the end of October, Gornish has been listening to the community and fine-tuning the store’s offerings since then. In November, Coby’s Pizza opened on site, run by Coby Adler, owner of Super Duper Bagels in Livingston. While Adler’s corner at The Fooderie offers freshly made pizza, calzones, lasagna and more throughout most of the day, he starts early in the morning with coffee, bagels, danish and more.
Along with pantry staples, fresh produce and a large fridge and freezer section, sushi is back in town with Simply Sushi. Additionally, a large selection of meat is available from Prime by Ari; and premade fleishig and pareve items are available to go.
The newest addition to The Fooderie is the Foodie Corner, run by Alyssa Kaplan, the owner of KosherGourmetMart, the first online kosher supermarket offering gourmet kosher food products not found in stores. Kaplan offered samples of several delicious products during the grand opening celebration.
“I’ve long thought it a shame that companies pay for kosher certification for products that kosher consumers could not easily access,” Kaplan told The Jewish Link. So she approached Gornish to propose creating a special section in his store to highlight eclectic quality kosher products. “To my delight, he accepted, and together we’re working to deliver exciting products to West Orange, starting with Korean sauces like gochujang chili and jams like Raspberry Mostarda, and Roasted Garlic Jam.”
The grand opening was advertised like a party, and it did not disappoint. The Chanukah and general party vibe greeted customers as they entered The Fooderie. DJ Jeff Wilks livened up the market with nonstop music. Popcorn, Sno Kones and cotton candy were given out. Makeup artist Diana Lopez of Diana’s Face Painting set up a station to paint the faces of young children with images of dreidels and menorahs. Stealing the show, however, was Ezra Nussbaum, Ezra the Magician, who performed card tricks for awed audiences of all ages.
Overall, the day was a great celebration of what is sure to be a staple of the community.
Rabbi Eliezer Zwickler of Congregation AABJ&D previously shared with The Jewish Link: “Shloimy Gornish is invested in, and dedicated to, ensuring that the store is successful and that our community is serviced with a full-scale glatt kosher supermarket experience. When Shloimy was first interested in purchasing the store, he insisted that his vision was dependent upon the partnership he sought from the community. We look forward to many successful years of The Fooderie providing us with all of our kosher needs.”
“I’m originally from the Five Towns, where kosher restaurants and takeout options are extremely available with multiple choices,” Rivka Rosen-Elbaum told The Jewish Link. She moved to West Orange in the height of the COVID pandemic. “Having The Fooderie with fabulous takeout makes it finally feel like home to me. The friendliness that I am greeted with reminds me that I am home.”
By Talia Liben Yarmush
