The days of the Olympics are drawing near and that means journalists, tourists and athletes will flock to Beijing to battle it out for the gold, or at least watch others compete. Of the attendees at the Olympic Village, 400 or more have requested kosher facilities, but is there anything kosher in China? For those who have toured Chinese marketplaces, this seems doubtful, but believe it or not, there is a kosher restaurant in the heart of Beijing, which is gearing up to provide all kinds of kosher food for the Summer Olympics, August 8-24.
Dini’s is Beijing’s only kosher restaurant, and it I will be open six days a week (excluding Shabbat) and 24 hours a day to cater to the needs of those who want to keep kosher. Dini’s offers Chinese and Japanese favorites as well as Israeli and traditional Jewish cuisine (imagine eating matzoh ball soup or a pastrami on rye in China?)
The restaurant is run by Dini and Shimon Freundlich, Lubavitch emissaries who provide a variety of services to Jews who live and travel to Beijing throughout the year. They are also preparing 400 kosher care packages of snacks for Jewish attendees in the Olympic Village. Many more packages are being prepared in advance as the numbers from Israel are expected to grow.
It is a little known fact that there have always been Jews in China, although the numbers have been relatively small. When the Communist government took power, many Jews left, but have made their way back since the 1990s. The Communist government often suppresses open religious observance, which is an obstacle to many Jews living in China. Some have had difficulties ordering prayer books from abroad. The Lubavitch emissaries once were told to take down their succa (hut erected especially for the holiday of Succot) because government officials suspected it was an undergroung church. Lucky for them, the holiday of Succot was over and it was time to take the succa down anyway.
If you happen to be going to China for the Olympics, stop off at Dini’s. And keep me in mind…the menu sounds delicious.