Kosher Blog

BS”D

You described Beacon Kosher as “cramped and gritty”, certainly not descriptors I would use to describe a wonderful shopping environment. So the question is whether it could be rehabilitated into a spacious, airy place providing a shopper’s paradise, perhaps specifically for a reduced line of true quality products and meat in demand, perhaps as a custom butcher. If so, I’s sure some enterprising individual will see that it’s done. On the other hand, if the community can’t support such a business and the Butcherie, then good riddance. There’s a reason why Target succeeded in most markets while in those same markets K-mart failed miserably. Shoppers would rather purchase the same basic items from a place conducive to shopping, with wide aisles, clean and bright. The same holds true for kosher establishments.

All good points, Craig. I used to prefer Beacon because its challah was great and it was closer, and I just dealt with the “cramped and gritty” nature.

The real problem is that the Butcherie is not glatt, so it’s not a real alternative for many people.

Good point, Joe. I rarely bought meat in those heady but poor days, so it wasn’t an issue for me. :-)

BS”D

Joe, if the Butcherie sees there’s significant money to be made by catering to the glatt-eating consumer, don’t you think that they’ll do it, rather than shooting themselves in the foot? At the very least, they can sell glatt meat they prepackaged in advance, which they bought in bulk. Certainly, they’ll do whatever it takes to keep a competitor from gaining a foothold, and losing their competitive advantage.

The Butcherie already tried once to have a totally separate glatt storefront on Harvard St about 15 years ago and it failed miserably. They closed it within several months.
Also, the Butcherie doesn’t NEED to have glatt meat to do very good business. Just like The Butcherie was not affected very much when Beacon Kosher originally opened.
If The Butcherie were to start carrying more glatt meat, it would have to be prepackaged meat that has a reliable hechsher on it. If The Butcherie got it in bulk and repackaged it, most people who are looking for glatt would not buy it because they don’t feel comfortable with the current hechsher of the Butcherie.

Paul, what do you mean that “most people” who look for glatt aren’t comfortable with the Butcherie’s hechsher? That’s a borderline libelous statement, because it accuses the Butcherie of not having a valid hechsher when in fact it does.

Big E: The Butcherie has a hechsher from a reliable rabbi who certifies that the food is kosher. I would never say that is not the case.

That being said, there are many people in the Boston Orthodox Jewish community, especially the clientele of Beacon Kosher, who don’t purchase prepared meats and foods from The Butcherie because they believe the standards held to by the Rav HaMachshir at the Butcherie are the standards they set for themselves.

I am not being libelous, I am just stating facts of the community as they exist today in Boston.

CORRECTION:
Big E: The Butcherie has a hechsher from a reliable rabbi who certifies that the food is kosher. I would never say that is not the case.

That being said, there are many people in the Boston Orthodox Jewish community, especially the clientele of Beacon Kosher, who don’t purchase prepared meats and foods from The Butcherie because they believe the standards held to by the Rav HaMachshir at the Butcherie are NOT the standards they set for themselves.

I am not being libelous, I am just stating facts of the community as they exist today in Boston.

Fair enough, and thanks for the clarification. However (what I’m about to say is only a rhetorical question) if as you say, there is a “reliable” rabbi overseeing the kashrut of the Butcherie, why is it that “many people” in the Boston Jewish community (most of whom are not rabbis and who are not trained in kosher supervision as the “reliable rabbi” presumably is) deny that rabbi’s certification? Do they know something the rabbi doesn’t know? Should those of who do shop at the butcherie and who buy our kosher meat there, prepared or otherwise, be worried?

Big E.
The main issue that people have with the Butcherie, besides there being non-glatt red meat there, is that there is no maschiach tamidi. The Rabbi who oversees it is very reliable. However, there is not always a shomer shabbos person on site. There is meat that is left with both non shomer shabbos Jews and more importantly with non-Jews. There is the issue of meat that has been “hidden from the eye” that you can’t assume unsealed meat and poultry that has been left without a shomer shabbos maschiach is kosher.
Whether or not you should be worried depends on what your personal standards are and what your rabbi advises.
I personally wouldn’t buy fresh meat or poultry from the Butcherie, but I wouldn’t go so far as to tell someone who did that they were doing something “wrong.”

A remark regarding the reliability of the hechsher at the Butcherie. Typically, one relies on the advice of his Rav as to whether a hechsher is acceptable according to the standards of the Rav. I have found that, in what I guess is an attempt to avoid the possibility of lashon hara, the Rav will not go into much detail other than to say he does not “recommend” a hechsher.

Thinking about this, though, here are some things that could affect whether a hechsher is recommended based on the Rav’s requirements: frequency of inspection/lack of mashgiach tamidi; non-chalav yisrael/non-pat yisrael/non-yoshon issues; level of infestation checking of fruits/vegetables used in prepared dishes; hechsher of ingredients used in prepared dishes; use of non-glatt(or non-Beit Yosef) meat in prepared dishes.

Although I always found Beacon Kosher to be a bit overpriced, it arguably had the best store-bought challah in the area.

Thanks for the additional insight. I will continue to patronize the Butcherie.

Beacon Kosher is closing for good on Sunday evening at 8:00PM. Almost everything in the store is 50% off (it excludes baked goods and meat). There is still some good stuff left and some stuff that they have by the case even.

Hi folks, I just wanted to comment on the Butcherie issues from another perspective:

Have you ever been in the Butcherie, or another kosher store, when the blackhats come in for what looks like a mafia-style shakedown? My mother has and found it disturbing.

There are a number of men in the community who apparently feel fine with the notion of “What a nice kosher business you have here… be a shame if something happened to it”.

I’m not quite sure what vile accusation Mr. Siegel is making, but I am rather certain it has no place in any sort of civil discourse.

Accusing a segment of the community of thuggery is way beyond the pale.

Marc Siegel,

What the heck are you talking about? What you describe doesn’t even seem plausible. Could it be that your mother observed a mashgiach at work and misinterpreted what was transpiring?

To answer your question … a resounding NO. I have never observed any sort of mafia-style shakedown in any kosher store.

I’ve never seen a mafia style shakedown and I doubt it quite works the way described by Mr. Siegel.

Still, you need to really explicitly be not paying attention to believe that kashrut certification of stores, restaurants, etc., is a purely apolitical, 100% halachic-based exercise.

What, Joe & Howie, you don’t think it’s possible for Jews to be dishonest?

It seems to me that heckshers are very politicized, and that all it would take is a rumor to cast one into doubt with at least some segment of the frum population. Given the degree of infighting amongst the Hasidim in New York it would surprise me not at all that such a thing has happened.

dude-
Of course individual Jews can be dishonest. But Mr. Siegel refers to when “the blackhats come in for a mafias-tyle shakedown.” This is an ataack against an entire community and is unacceptable. It implies an organized attempt at extortion. This sort of unfounded allegation is unacceptable. Mr. Siegel clearly has some axe to grind; allegations of racketeering should not be made lightly.

For those of you in brookline in need of Glatt Kosher meat and poultry please visit our website http://www.glattondemand.com. We would love to help those of you who are now without another option. There is also another posting about our service on kosherblog.net.

I”M from BROOKLYN,but on this past tuesday night at 6pm,my family was reused entry into the BUTCHERIE—while the salesperson allowed REGULAR customers in thru the side door.We are FRUM, but are ashamed of the behavior and attitude of Kosher-GLATT OR NOT–establishments.Even our 8/9/07 experience at LEVINES in peabody was lacking—-TODD LEVINE who served us last year was not there a week ago!!!!!!!He is a mensch!!!!

Pop quiz time:

Anyone care to guess what time The Butcherie closes on Tuesday? Is it:

A) 6 PM
B) Not 6 PM
C) Ralph Nader