On Friday night, Shabbos March 3, my wife Ahuva and I attended Congregation Ahavat Shalom’s annual Cholent Cook-off. Despite the light drizzle, approximately 90 apartment residents (including some with strollers) gathered to enjoy the competition. The event was filled with the tantalizing aroma of simmering cholent, as 10 contestants vied for the title of the best cholent in town.
The contestants were a mix of seasoned veterans and new faces, including Avi Schneider, Yocheved and Aryeh Sunshine, Andy Botvinik (shul treasurer), Yitz Richmond, Miriam and Aytan Wachspress, Gershi Adler (past treasurer), Yoni Levine, Moshe Wasserman, Binyomin Barman, and Leora and David Moskovich (first lady and president). They each donned their Congregation Ahavat Shalom-sponsored chef hats and manned their stations in the TABC lunchroom at 8:45 p.m..
Upon arriving, we received three tickets, which we used to vote for our favorite cholent by dropping them in empty coffee cups by each of our favorite three offerings. Potato kugel from Glatt Express and other snacks and drinks were also on hand to complement the delicious cholent. Over the next hour and a half, Ahuva and I tried many different types of cholent, some that were more liquidy, spicy, featured pastrami or more sweet potato, and others that were cooked longer. My trick was to try only a little bit of cholent from each pot in order to not fill up. Whenever a contestant tried serving me more, I insisted that they take some back so that I wouldn’t be too stuffed.
After an hour and a half of indulging in rich and complex flavors, the board members of Ahavat Shalom tallied up the votes. During the vote-counting process, President David Moskovich delivered a heartfelt dvar Torah connecting the legendary creature, the rainbow Tachash, to the cholent contest. Then, the winners were announced to the eagerly awaiting crowd. The gold medal went to Yocheved and Aryeh Sunshine, the silver medal was awarded to Andy Botvinik, and the bronze was granted to Leora and David Moskovich. The first-place prize winners received store credit to Glatt Express, which is owned and run by Dani Secemski, a former Congregation Ahavat Shalom member. It was no coincidence that Ahuva and I had two out of our three vote-getters place in the top three, proving that we have good taste!
Bronze finisher and event planner David Moskovich spoke of the event’s success, saying, “What was most exciting to me was to be able to interact with so many people in the community who I recognize because I see them every week, but don’t necessarily get a good opportunity to speak to. It’s so exciting to see that our membership is filled with really amazing people.” We would certainly agree. Ahuva and I made many new friends while bonding over delicious cholent in a fun social setting. We even had the honor of meeting the Sunshines, the first-place finishers.
Overall, the Cholent Cook-off was a great success, bringing together the community for a night of tasty food and fun. We are looking forward to next year’s Cholent Cook-off. Maybe this time we’ll even enter as contestants!
(Thank you to David Moskovich for providing much of the detail for this article)
Zachary Greenberg is a consultant at Semler Brossy and the TABC track coach. In 2021, Zachary became a member of Congregation Ahavat Shalom,—the first time he paid for his own membership! Additionally, he recently watched the action film Nobody (2021) on HBO Max. If you have any recommendations of fun places for Zachary to cover, email him at [email protected].
