As prices rise, Haredi Jerusalemites line shops — and soup kitchens — ahead of Passover
Despite rampant poverty in Mea Shearim neighborhood and a 5% rise in Passover food costs, demand for high-end goods is high, but so is reliance on charity
Zev Stub is the Times of Israel's Diaspora Affairs correspondent.
Two days before the beginning of the Passover holiday, the streets were packed with shoppers in the ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhoods of Mea Shearim and Geula on Thursday afternoon.
Shoppers, including many visiting from abroad for the holiday, crowded the main commercial streets shopping for clothing, housewares, gifts, and kosher-for-Pesach food products that would enhance their enjoyment of the festival of freedom.
In the residential side streets off the main drag, residents were busy at work cleaning their homes of hametz, the leavened grain products forbidden on the weeklong holiday.
Shmuel, visiting from Lakewood, New Jersey, said he was particularly grateful to bring his American family to Israel for Passover for the first time. “Last year, we were at the airport about to get on the plane when Iran attacked Israel, and we were forced to come back home,” he said. “That makes being here now even more special.”
Despite Israel’s rising cost of living, commerce was vibrant in the neighborhood, considered one of the poorest in the country. The average price of a Passover food basket rose 5 percent compared to last year, according to a survey conducted by the Israel Consumer Council.
Ahead of the festival, many families had more cooking to do than usual as the holiday begins on Saturday night, right after Shabbat, meaning that religious Jews must prepare ahead for two days when cooking and other productive acts are prohibited.
Unusually, several bakeries along the street proudly displayed their challah bread for sale, a jarring sight for many who had spent the previous days scrubbing their homes to remove any traces of leavened bread. This year’s juxtaposition of Sabbath and Passover means that bread must be eaten Friday night and early Saturday morning, right before the commandment to remove all hametz from one’s possession kicks in.
To ease the burden of cooking for two days, many people lined up at stores selling ready-made foods, stocking up on generous portions of chicken, meat, and traditional side dishes.
At Hadar Geula, a popular takeout spot, a man behind the counter sang Passover songs as he served the hordes of people packed into the storefront. One customer ordered dinner for his family of 10, while behind, a husband and wife disagreed about whether they needed gefilte fish at the meal.
Outside, meanwhile, less fortunate people begged for charity, invoking the deeply rooted tradition of providing extra for those in need prior to the Passover holiday.
Under the shadow of the war in Gaza and a deepening economic crisis, thousands of families have reportedly received holiday food packages from local charities.
On a quiet side street away from the crowds, a bearded man asked a boy on the street where to find Bnot Yerushalayim, one of several well-known soup kitchens in the neighborhood distributing food for the holiday.
“It’s down the block and to the left,” the boy replied. “But don’t bother. They’re already out of food.”
The man walked on, disappointed. A moment later, the boy caught up with him, with a look of determination on his face. “Do you need money for the holiday?” he asked. “I have an extra food card. Here, you can have it.”
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