The Jewish High Holidays are right around the corner, and restaurants and caterers in NoVA are offering prepared meals so you can spend more time with your family.
Rosh Hashanah, the holiday that marks the beginning of the Jewish New Year, begins at sunset on Friday, September 15 and ends at sunset on Sunday, September 17. Yom Kippur— the Day of Atonement marked by a 25-hour fast — begins at sunset on Sunday, September 24 and ends at sunset on Monday, September 25.
There are several food traditions related to the High Holidays, including eating challah or apples dipped in honey on Rosh Hashanah to symbolize the beginning of a sweet year, a pre-fast meal before the beginning of Yom Kippur, and another feast to break the fast at the end of Yom Kippur.
While the holidays are a couple of weeks away, you’ll need to order ahead of time.
Bethesda Bagels
This bagel deli offers a special catering menu for Yom Kippur. Choose from several options for platters with bagels and toppings like smoked salmon, whitefish, and tuna, chicken, or egg salads. Round out the order with a fruit platter or a tray of cookies, complete with rugelach, chocolate tops, and rainbow layer cookies. The minimum for preorder is two dozen bagels or a $60 total. 1851 N. Moore St., Arlington
Call Your Mother
This beloved DMV-area bagel chain offers a heat-at-home dinner box with brisket; pastrami fried rice; honey sesame roasted carrots; a salad of cucumber, peach, and tomato; and a house-baked challah. Add a tray of potato latkes on the side and finish off the meal with a holiday apple cake. Pastry trays and bagel trays are also available. Order by September 12 for Rosh Hashanah or by September 22 for Yom Kippur. Catering isn’t available at the McLean Lil’ Deli, and delivery isn’t available to Virginia, so plan for a trip into DC. Multiple locations in Washington, DC
Celebrity Delly
This Falls Church deli offers a five-course catered Rosh Hashanah dinner for pickup or delivery on September 15 or 16. It starts off with matzoh ball soup, then a choice of chopped liver or gefilte fish. The entrée options are brisket, salmon beurre blanc, turkey, or chicken. You have a choice of two sides, with options like green beans, potato latkes, and tzimmes, plus an assorted dessert course and a twisted challah loaf. 7263A Arlington Blvd., Falls Church
Founding Farmers
Founding Farmers offers options for both heat-and-eat takeout for Rosh Hashanah and a dine-in holiday menu that’s offered from the beginning of Rosh Hashanah to the end of Yom Kippur. Its starters include matzoh ball soup and cauliflower hummus, plus quinoa tabbouleh and noodle kugel for sides. Entrées include fig-orange chicken, salmon, or brisket, and honey-date loaf cake is among the dessert options. The website notes that the restaurant is unable to cook kosher in the kitchens. Multiple locations
The Kosher Kitchen
This certified kosher caterer has many options for starters, sides, mains, and desserts ordered a la carte. Dig into branzino with mushrooms, red wine–braised brisket, or oven-baked chicken for the main attraction, and fill the rest of the table with Moroccan couscous, two types of kugels, soups and salads, and apple crumble or baklava for dessert. Order by noon on September 11 for pickup or delivery on September 15. 6301 Montrose Rd., North Bethesda, Maryland (Delivery is available throughout Northern Virginia.)
Feature image Anastasiia Nurullina/stock.adobe.com
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