Like many couples, the Bridge Turkish & Mediterranean Grill restaurant of Highland Park chose to celebrate its first anniversary with the observant Jewish community by talking about their relationship and enjoying a treat together.
Well, sort of. In honor of the first anniversary since they reopened as a kosher restaurant, The Bridge hosted a talk by Rutgers Professor Haim Baruh on the “500 Years of Peaceful Co-Existence Between Turks and Jews” on Sunday, February 9. And they provided free dessert to sweeten the occasion.
As the time for Professor Baruh’s talk drew near, the restaurant filled to capacity, with diners from near and far. Michael Garber, mashgiach of the restaurant, formally started the event by greeting all those present and thanking them for coming out to celebrate the restaurant’s anniversary. He shared that the restaurant’s reputation as one of only three known kosher Turkish restaurants worldwide has grown. This is reflected in the guests they’ve hosted from Baltimore, London, Turkey, Norway and other distant locations, and in the growing number of shuls and families who’ve held Shabbat evening dinners at the restaurant.
Professor Baruh opened his talk by discussing his background, sharing that he was born in Istanbul to a Jewish family with deep roots in Turkey. He attended high school and college in Istanbul, earning a degree in mechanical engineering. He came to the U.S. for graduate study, accepted a position at Rutgers, met and married an American woman, and moved to Highland Park in 1987. His sister still lives in Turkey with her extended family.
He then presented an overview of the history of the Jewish community in Turkey. While there is evidence of Jewish life in the area from as early as 200 B.C.E., the historical records indicate that there was discrimination against Jews and restrictions on freedom of worship under the Byzantine Empire (330-1453). So it is believed that whatever Jewish presence there was small. The conquest of Istanbul by the Ottomans in 1445, and the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, led to the growth of the Jewish community. The Ottomans demonstrated much more tolerance of Jews and encouraged their immigration from Europe. The Spanish Expulsion in 1492 prompted a sizable number of Jews to relocate to several areas of the Ottoman Empire.
The Ottoman Empire’s Sultan, Beyazit II, viewed the Jewish presence in his empire very favorably, as he valued their business acumen and contacts in Europe and their high levels of educational attainment. This in turn led a few prominent Jewish business families to relocate to the area that is now Turkey.
The Ottoman Empire began to decline in the 17th century and disintegrated in 1918, which was followed shortly by the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923. With the nationalistic rhetoric of the new government, a wealth tax imposed in the 1940s and riots against non-Muslims in the 1950s, the Jewish community began to shrink from its height of 100,000-120,000 in the early part of the century. Under the current Turkish government, which exhibits a pronounced Islamist attitude and frequent criticism of Israel, this trend has continued, and it is now believed that only 11,000-15,000 Jews remain in Turkey. The Jews remaining there are located primarily in Istanbul and a small community in Izmir, and they have 15 synagogues (though only five have daily services); one or two kosher restaurants; a weekly newspaper, Shalom; an elementary, secondary and high school; and a chief rabbinate and Bet Din.
Professor Baruh ended his talk with thanks to The Bridge for inviting him to talk, thanks to the audience for listening and a prayer for greater tolerance of other people’s religious views and opinions.
“Over the course of the year that The Bridge has been reopened, my husband Eric and I have been delighted with the excellent food and service,” said Kay Silverman. “Tonight’s event was very insightful and interesting, as we were able to hear the ideas and views from Dr. Baruch concerning Turkish Jews throughout history to today, from the first migration in the late 1400s through now where only 11 to 15,000 remain. The talk left us longing to visit, and the food was our best meal there yet.”
“I’ve been speaking with Haim Baruh about his heritage for years,” said Daniel Rushefshy of Highland Park. “I really enjoyed learning more about his history and the 500-year history of Jews in Turkey. The Jewish experience in Turkey has been mostly positive and that is both rare and very encouraging.”
By Harry Glazer
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