Tag Archives: kosher

Huatulco, San Miguel de Allende

Jewish Pilgrimage Festivals in Mexico

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By Marcia Chaiken and Jan Chaiken—

Among the many pilgrimages that occur in Mexico, probably the ones with the oldest historical foundations are some Jewish observances. Known in Hebrew as the Shalosh Regalim, the “three pilgrimage festivals,” the observance of these ancient practices was carried here by Jews who accompanied the Spanish conquistadors. They were practiced in secret, since the Spanish Inquisition imposed the death penalty on those who carried out Jewish observances.

Historically, the three Jewish pilgrimages occurred in the land of Israel during times when Temples existed in Jerusalem: Solomon’s Temple, between the 10th and 6th centuries BCE, and the Second Temple, between 538 BCE and 70 CE.

Three times each year, marking the beginning of the spring barley harvest, the beginning of the summer wheat harvest, and the end of the annual fall harvests, Jewish law, as written in the Torah (Jewish scriptures), commanded that members of the twelve tribes of Israel travel from their home territories, largely by foot, up to the Temple in Jerusalem carrying specific offerings.

The three pilgrimages were known by names that are still used around the world, including in Mexico today. The spring harvest pilgrimage was also known as Passover (Pesaj); the beginning of the summer pilgrimage, Shavuot; and the fall pilgrimage, Sukkot, or the Feast of Booths (Cabañuelas).

In addition to offerings of the choicest of the harvest, each of the pilgrimages required sacrifices of animals brought by the pilgrims to the priests at the Temple. The Passover sacrifice was a one-year-old unblemished male lamb. The lamb was a reminder of the sacrifice of a lamb and shared meal that took place about 3,300 years ago on the night before the Israelite slaves were freed in Egypt and began their long journey toward the Promised Land.

Shavuot involved offerings of first fruits and loaves of bread baked from the choicest early wheat, along with a diverse selection of domesticated animals. Once again, the animals were chosen from the best of the herds and flocks and examined to ensure the absence of any blemish. These sacrifices reenacted the ceremonial offerings that, according to the Torah, took place at the foot of Mount Sinai, where the Ten Commandments were given to the Israelites.

The most noteworthy animal sacrifice for Sukkot entailed seventy bulls offered over the seven days of the pilgrimage festival. Temple rites for Sukkot also involved a far less bloody ceremony: the water ceremony. Pilgrims lined the path the priests followed from the Temple down to a pool of water at the bottom of the Temple Mount.

As the priests descended to fill their ceremonial bowls and climbed back up to the Temple, the pilgrims sang and danced in joy. They continued singing and dancing as the priests poured the water, together with wine, over the Temple altar, assuring all that there would be sufficient rain to produce abundant crops in the following year.

Pilgrimage to Jerusalem came to an end in 70 CE when the Roman army besieged the Temple Mount, almost completely destroyed the Temple, leaving only the Western Wall standing, killed a large portion of the Jewish population in the Holy Land, and sent thousands more into exile. With the destruction of the Temple and the end of priestly sacrifice, it fell to the rabbis to decide how Judaism could continue without pilgrimages to the Temple Mount or flesh-and-blood offerings. The discussions and debates that followed were recorded for posterity. Although physical pilgrimage ceased, the rabbis continued to refer to the festivals as the Shalosh Regalim, and each holiday remained a hag, the Hebrew word for pilgrimage, linguistically related to the Arabic hajj.

Since the end of the Inquisition in Mexico in 1820 and Mexico’s independence from Spain shortly thereafter, the Shalosh Regalim have been openly practiced by observant (and not so observant) Jews. Passover seders, often large family and community gatherings, retell the story of the Exodus from slavery in Egypt. On the seder table, along with other symbolic foods, is a shank bone, a reminder of the original sacrificial lamb. On Shavuot, meals traditionally include grains and fruits reminiscent of those once harvested and brought to the Temple. On Sukkot, ceremonies involve four species of ancient plants. A bundle of willow, palm, and myrtle, called the lulav, when shaken produces a sound likened to falling rain. Although the water ceremony exists only in memory, Jews still sing and dance as they shake the lulav and pray for a year of sufficient rain to foster the coming crops.

As the hag of Passover ends, those gathered for seders often call out in Spanish, “Este año estamos aquí; el próximo año, en Jerusalén.” (“This year we are here; next year, in Jerusalem.”)

2026 Festival Dates
Passover begins on the evening of Wednesday, April 1, 2026, and concludes Thursday, April 9, 2026

Shavuot begins on the evening of Thursday, May 21, 2026, and concludes Saturday, May 23, 2026

Sukkot begins on the evening of Friday, September 25, 2026, and concludes Friday, October 2, 2026.

Drs. Marcia and Jan Chaiken have been married for 62 years and have published many justice system research reports together.

Huatulco

Kosher Restaurants in Mexico

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By Marcia Chaiken and Jan Chaiken

The Jewish population of Mexico is estimated to be somewhere between 40,000 and 50,000 people, the fourteenth largest Jewish population in the world. It is not surprising, then, that a large number of kosher restaurants are located in Mexico City, where most of those Jews live. A few other kosher restaurants are scattered around the country – especially in Guadalajara and resort areas catering to Jewish tourists.

The term “kosher” is often misunderstood as meaning “clean.” It does not mean “clean,” nor does it refer to foods that are stereotypically Jewish, such as bagels or hot pastrami sandwiches on rye bread. In fact, some bagels and hot pastrami sandwiches are not kosher. To be accepted as kosher, the source and preparation of the food must adhere to Jewish law. Here are some of the major laws and their implications for Mexican restaurants.

Mixing meat and dairy products is strictly forbidden. No cheese and meat tacos or enchiladas can be kosher (unless the “meat” is plant based). To make sure this mixing does not occur, kosher restaurants are either “meat” restaurants with no dairy products on the premises or “dairy” restaurants with no meat on the premises. Often the type of restaurant can be deduced from the name, such as “Gaucho Grill” in Polanco, “Milk” on Reforma de Bosques, or “Burger House” on Las Palmas. If the menu in a kosher meat restaurant has “leche” (milk) for coffee or “helado” (ice cream) on the menu – you can be sure both are nondairy substitutes. Many of the kosher restaurants in Mexico serve meat. And a relatively large number of kosher dairy restaurants are pizzerias; there you can find pizzas with tomato sauce, cheese, mushrooms, olives and a variety of other vegetables – but not any meat.

Hotels in Mexican resorts with kosher restaurants that serve both meat dishes and dairy dishes never serve both at the same time in the same venue. These include NIZUC in Cancun and Grand Velas Riviera Maya. We frequently stayed at Grand Hotel Acapulco where guests actually voted on whether they would all have a meat dinner or a dairy dinner the next day. The tablecloths, napkins, cutlery and dishes used for serving meat dishes are exclusively used for meat meals. And similar items used for dairy meals are also exclusively used for dairy. The kitchens are under rabbinic supervision to assure this separation. Chefs in a kosher restaurant know that a spoon previously used to stir elote (corn) with melted butter cannot be later used to stir chicken soup – the whole batch of chicken soup would then not be kosher.

Meat in kosher restaurants must be from domesticated fowl or animals that have split hooves and chew their cud. Fortunately, this includes meat that is found all over Mexico, including chicken, duck, Cornish hen, beef, goat, lamb and venison. However, the birds and animals must be ritually slaughtered, using procedures that were developed thousands of years ago to cause minimal pain to the animal. Some of the animals that are considered staples in Mexico – such as pork products or delicacies such as iguana – are prohibited in kosher restaurants.

Fish is an example of a class of food (called parve or pareve) that is neither meat or dairy and can be served in either type of restaurant. But fish served in kosher restaurants must have both fins and scales. Nothing else from the sea is allowed. Although there are many “fish” restaurants in Mexico that do not have meat on their menus, most are not kosher since they also serve mariscos, which could be camarones (shrimp), pulpo (octopus), calamares (squid) or other seafood with shells. Aside from fish, other foods that are considered parve and are served in both meat and dairy establishments include baked goods with no dairy ingredients, eggs and virtually all types of fruits and vegetables – inspected to be sure they are free of impermissible contaminants.

Strictly vegan and vegetarian restaurants are increasingly found in urban areas all around Mexico. Many people who observe kashrut (Jewish dietary laws) happily chow down in these places knowing that there will be no mixing of meat and milk, nor any chance of eating nonkosher meat or seafood. But very observant Jews are likely to stick to restaurants that are certified kosher and supervised by rabbis. In Mexico quite a few organizations are recognized for certifying restaurants as well as bakeries and grocery stores as providing kosher meals and products. Some are local to Mexico, such as Kosher Maguen David, and others are international, such as Orthodox Union. The symbols of certification look like little designs for the uninitiated. But for those who care about observing kashrut, seeing their preferred symbols on the window of a restaurant or stamped on products in Mexican stores means “you can shop here” or “you can eat this.”

Just as Jews in Mexico have immigrated here from countries all over the world, kosher restaurants reflect the backgrounds of their owners. Some Jewish restaurant owners are from families that have lived in Mexico for generations and their menus are not very different from nonkosher restaurants. But, in addition to kosher pizza, kosher Mexico restaurants variously serve Argentine parrillas (grilled meats), Russian style borscht and other dishes, Israeli falafel and salads, chicken soup with matzoh balls, and, yes, of course, bagels, lox and cream cheese. You needn’t be Jewish to eat in a kosher Mexican restaurant. But don’t expect to go there on Friday night or daylight hours on Saturday, and don’t ask for bread and butter to eat with your steak.