"Manischewitz" news and stories

Ahh, Passover. With the first night's Seder behind us, we have that pleasant full-of-matzo feeling (not to mention a vague Concord grape-wine hangover). We stumble into the kitchen and realize that, breakfast options being what they are during this leavening-free week, we're going to need some more kosher-for-Passover cereal. And you know what? It's gonna cost us. You can call Passover food stale, tasteless and even unhealthy -- and you definitely can't call it a bargain.

This is, of course, not exactly news. In fact, it was twenty years ago that Manischewitz, probably the most famous purveyor of matzo and other Passover foods, was hit with a fine of $1 million for allegedly engaging in price fixing with its competitors (notably Streit's and Horowitz, which Manischewitz later acquired). But as Benyamin Cohen points out on Slate, not much has changed since the early 1990s. It's still commonplace to find Passover staples (cereal, jelly, tuna) selling for triple the price of their goyische counterparts.

Jagermeister in the snow. Photo: janeyesee, Flickr

Our counterparts over at AOL U.K. recently ran an article entitled "Comedy Booze" lamenting the unfortunate habit some guests have of using parties to re-gift hard alcohol they found unfit to stomach back when they received it. From Greek ouzo to French pastis, it's a multi-culti takedown.

Of course, sometimes that famous Brit wit doesn't cross the pond. We know some folks who adore pastis, and others for whom a bottle of Jagermeister might be considered quite a smashing (or quite funny) addition to a party.

That said, we can certainly sympathize with the sentiment. After the jump, three things we think you should never bring to a party. Tell us what we missed!

For those of you out there who are beginning to think about getting your kitchens and pantries ready for Passover, be forewarned that you're going to have fewer Manischewitz products to choose from than you have in past years. The company has been in the process of putting a new oven in their one and only baking facility in Newark, NJ and, unfortunately, there were some engineering delays that made them miss the Passover baking window.

The company officials debated whether to stop producing some products altogether for the time being or just make less of them. The decided to temporarily stop production on a few of the less popular matzo products, including Passover Thin Tea Matzo, Yolk Free Egg Matzo, White Grape Matzo, Concord Grape Matzo, Spelt Matzo (unfortunate for observant Jews with wheat allergies) and the beloved cracker-sized Tam Tams.

So, for the Pesach-observant Slashfood readers, you might want to scour the shelves for any boxes of Tam Tams. Because when they're gone, there won't be anymore out there until the end of April.

[via City Room]

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