How Tasting My Way through Israel Inspired My Entrepreneurial Venture
I vividly remember the moment I received the email invitation to join the JCC Seed 613 2017 Bootcamp cohort. I was excitedly sitting in the backseat of a taxi headed to JFK airport for what was soon to be the very trip that inspired Sari (my twin sister) and me to accept the offer and embark on our entrepreneurial journey, which actually began several years ago. We were both ready to try something new.
There’s no doubt that a ‘Taste Through the Lens’ Taglit trip would be full of delicious meals together, but I did not expect my first one to be sitting on the airport floor, beside 48 other strangers, indulging in Shake Shack before our 11:59PM flight to Israel (thank you, Danny Meyer!). I realized then that it had been a while since I had the chance to meet so many interesting people all at once. My personal goal of getting to know everyone in 10 days, including the nine Israelis we would meet upon arrival in Israel, was officially underway.
One of the things that struck me about this trip was that I found myself happily trusting the opinions of those who knew the ins and outs, since I was a visitor to a country and culture I wasn’t native to. I smile thinking about my Israeli friends asking me, “What do you want to eat?” and my response always being, “You tell me!” when we were out for a quick lunch break or an evening, free to explore the Jerusalem market, Mahane Yehuda.
The adventure of becoming good friends, through tasting the cuisine and enjoying many curiosity-driven conversations, on bus rides and out in nature, led us to create this venture.
We are working on re-inventing restaurant dining in food-centric cities by co-founding a new social dining experience for explorers and food enthusiasts; one that celebrates the connections between people, their cities, and what lights them up.
While Sari and I did participate on this trip together, we both decided to not eat together at meal times (95% of the time). Many of the other siblings on this trip did, but choosing not to do so gave us the chance to better connect with others – about our upbringings, career aspirations, fears, and favorite foods.
Looking back on that experience and looking ahead towards the future of our entrepreneurial venture, I want to share with you a quick lesson I learned:
“Wherever you go, always bring a fork.”
The credit for this phrase goes to Yael, one of our charismatic, Israeli tour guides. She said these words to 51 strangers, as we all looked out into the vast, rugged landscape of the Golan Heights on Day 1 of our ‘Taste Through the Lens’ trip.
Her silly-yet-serious mantra stuck with me and propelled me to dig deeper into what it meant.
Like Yael, I hold the belief that in order to experience a new culture and people, one must be ready to dive into its food scene and eat. But also, having a bring a fork mentality is one I have grown up with – it allows me to open myself up to connecting beyond language barriers, beliefs, and status. I am fortunate to have been a part of many meals in which the food and company were a special, uniting force that brought everyone together.
Sari and I are driven to act on the concept of being present – being ‘together, together’ versus ‘alone together.’ So much opportunity is missed when we close ourselves off from getting to know the people around us. Kindness towards the stranger is a theme in the Torah, and being our Bnot Mitzvah portion, it’s a thought that is always with each of us. Think about it – many of your friends were once strangers you had not yet met, right?
So, I have a challenge for you:
Go ahead and recount any experiences you have had dining with someone new, or with a new group of people that you didn’t know very well, who then became your friends.
Where were you, what did you talk about, and how did you feel? Present? Interested? Vulnerable? Happy?
Feel free to share your stories in the comments, or via email: laurenmfeingold@gmail.com.
Sari and I are now here in Chicago, on a mission to help you ‘bring your fork’ to more dinners out at restaurants and to give you a seat at the tables you most want to be a part of.
If you are intrigued by what you have read here, I invite you to register for our upcoming JCC Launch Night on May 17th when the link goes live on the JCC site.
We will be pitching our venture (and divulging its name!) there, and we truly would love for you to come say hi at the event.
Launch Night: Seed613 Fellows
May 17, 2017
5:30–8:30pm
1871, 222. W. Merchandise Mart plaza, #1212, Chicago