L.A. restaurants are serving up comforting matzo ball soup and takeout Seder plates to make sure Passover needs are covered.
This year, as social distancing is being practiced, holidays that are typically celebrated with groups of friends and family will be spent in much smaller settings. For Passover, Jewish delis like Canter’s and Brent’s are prepping seder plates for the first two nights and family meals for the entire week. “We’ve been here for almost 100 years and we’re planning on being here for another 100,” says Jacqueline Canter of her family’s delicatessen in the Fairfax district which will be serving up brisket, chicken or turkey dinners with matzo ball soup, gefilte fish, chopped liver, charoseth and macaroons with add-ons like potato pancakes. Canter’s even has boxes of matzah and Manischewitz wine.“I ordered all of this matzah before [the spread of COVID-19],” she adds of having hard-to-find kosher for Passover matzah. Similarly, Brent’s Deli will offer a la carte items in addition to its family takeout dinners including potato kugel and chocolate-covered matzo brittle, among other heartier offerings.
A newer spot on the block, Wexler’s Deli in Santa Monica, is serving up preorder Passover seder dinners for April 7-12 that feed four to six people. The meal includes traditional braised brisket, salad, matzo ball soup, house-made gefilte fish with horseradish, heirloom carrots and potato kugel. Plus, various caviars are on offer as side dishes.
Barbecue hotspots across town are also serving Passover menus such as Adam Perry Lang’s APL, which will offer brisket and matzo ball soup, and will have brisket all week long. SLAB is taking orders for Passover through April 3, with a special menu that includes its take on the seder plate with all the fixings including bitter greens and citrus salad, apple and walnut charoseth, and coconut and chocolate macaroons.
For the first time in the restaurant’s history, Suzanne Tracht’s Jar will not be hosting its annual seder dinner, instead offering a Passover menu through April 16 with highlights including Tracht’s signature pot roast, braised lamb shank and matzah-crusted chicken paillard, plus bittersweet chocolate-covered matzah with pecans, toffee and sea salt to top it all off.
Culver City’s Akasha is also adjusting to not having its annual seder dinner at the restaurant this year. In addition to her matzo ball soup and a self-assemble soup kit, and entrees including chicken tagine, the restaurant will have cocktails to go and ice cream by the pint as well. It’s important to note that Akasha’s Passover food rules are strictly followed, and the dinner is “Kosher Style” containing no dairy.
For the 36th year, Spago will serve up a Passover seder plate, though this time it’s available for curbside pickup or delivery only. Offered on the first two nights of Passover (April 8 and 9), Wolfgang Puck’s seder will be available for pickup 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., as 7:20 p.m. is sundown (when seders prayers begin). The dinner will benefit Mazon, a Jewish national advocacy organization working to end hunger among people of all faiths and backgrounds. The dinner, which can be ordered for up to 12 people, features homemade gefilte fish, Spago chicken and vegetable soup with Judy Gethers’ matzo balls, Ora king salmon, beef short rib, vegetable ratatouille and Moroccan carrots, plus a slew of desserts including coconut macaroons, Valrhona chocolate soufflé cake, flourless chocolate almond bars, chocolate chip chewy meringues, whipped crème fraîche and Pudwell Farms’ berries. What’s more? The seder kit comes with candles and a link to an online seder ceremony to follow along.
For those celebrating both Passover and Easter, Polo Lounge will have menus for both holidays. The restaurant needs 24-hour notice for its complete seder dinner, served April 8. The traditional dinner for four includes items like matzo ball soup, braised carrots with prunes, potato kugel, roast brisket and braised lamb shank, plus two desserts. Clementine will also have separate Easter and Passover menus. Passover classics including a traditional seder plate and a complete meal for two including a choice of free-range chicken, salmon or braised brisket plus sides, flourless desserts, a la carte options and heating instructions. And if just the accoutrements are what you're looking for, Wally's Wine has kosher wine for curbside pickup.
