For seven years now, every early autumn we have been meeting with you at a shared table during the TISH Jewish food festival. This year, we have decided to temporarily change the event’s format. The humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, in particular the hunger and suffering of Palestinian civilians, may seem distant and unrelated to the culinary history of Polish Jews. For us, however, it is not a time for celebration, but rather a time for reflection—on whether the eponymous tish, the table, still has the power to bring people together: nations at war, polarized societies, families or social groups divided by differing worldviews. Are we able, even for a moment, to disconnect from social media and talk at a shared table about what unites us?

This year, we invite you to intimate gatherings, workshops and walks—they will provide an opportunity for conversation, mindfulness and discovering what we do have in common. The kitchen, the shared table and the memory of flavors hold the power of reconciliation, despite differences of origin, beliefs or traditions. During this year’s edition, we want to show that recipes, tastes and rituals passed down from generation to generation build bridges between the past and the present, reminding us of our shared roots. Jewish culinary tradition originated in the Levant; it shares recipes, flavors, and ingredients with other cuisines of this region. It evolved in the diasporas—in Eastern Europe it also influenced Polish cuisine, while itself being transformed by local conditions, products and by the people encountered here.

Food is a carrier of history, identity and memory. We will listen to the stories hidden in family traditions and recipes that travel with people, bringing with them the taste and scent of home. We will begin with breakfast at the market, where we will sample Jewish flavors in their local and ecological form and hear about family recipes that have been prepared for generations. On the following days, during culinary workshops, seniors, teenagers, and even the youngest participants will have a chance to test their skills in the kitchen.

We will also invite you to explore our museum collection, which includes extraordinary objects related to culinary culture—including a very special cookbook.

There will also be meetings with special guests—e.g., Laurel Kratochvila, creator of the iconic ‘Fine Bagels’ and ‘Le Balto,’ author of the cookbooks "New European Baking" and "Dobre, dobre," which presents Polish cuisine as seen through her eyes, will travel from Berlin to join us. Laurel will speak about her roots, which stretch from Poland all the way to Boston. During the meeting, she will treat participants to the dishes prepared according to her own recipes.

Good things are done together, which is why, as each year, we have invited our partner institutions to collaborate. JCC Warsaw and the Yiddish Culture Center will open their doors to us, and Hillel Poland will introduce us to the secrets of kashrut. Warsaw’s museums will also prepare accompanying events: the Ethnographic Museum, the Pharmacy Museum, the Museum of Warsaw, and the Praga Museum of Warsaw.

We invite you to join us at a shared table.

Phot. Z. Borysiewicz / Museum of the History of Polish Jews