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June 18, 2004/Sivan 29 5764, Vol. 56, No.39
Sliced meats by the pound and bagels from New York
RAEANNE MARSH
Special to Jewish News
The "traditional Jewish-style food" that Brandon Budd plans to offer at the Scottsdale Kosher Market's deli will cover a lot more than knishes and pastrami on rye. The take-out kosher deli, on track to open sometime in July inside the kosher market at Shea Boulevard and Scottsdale Road, will also offer a wide variety of salads and an extensive selection of baked goods.
The menu reflects Budd's own mixed background of Ashkenazic and Sephardic cultures, with some Asian and Italian flavors as well. Salads, he notes, are very big in Sephardic cooking, and he will offer a variety that will include tomato and pepper salads and eggplant salads. Sephardic also encompasses Moroccan cooking, with such characteristic spices as cumin, coriander, garlic and paprika.
"A lot of the menu comes from my own interest in cooking," he says, emphasizing his commitment to using good quality, fresh ingredients and eliminating excess fat to offer the most healthful version of "the food you traditionally like to eat" - kishka, chopped liver, wraps and sandwiches. In addition to the deli's core menu, a changing assortment of weekly specials will allow Budd to experiment with new items to offer his customers.
"We're responsive to what the community needs," declares Budd, who says the most requested deli items seem to be kosher sliced meats and rotisserie chicken. The deli is the final element of Scottsdale Kosher Market, which has been open since March.
"We want to be a one-stop shop for everything in Jewish life," Budd says.
For instance, he explains, a customer may come in for a chicken for Shabbat but may also need candles or a replacement for a kiddush cup that broke. And, of course, a challah.
In fact, the deli at Scottsdale Kosher Market will offer an extensive line of baked goods: breads, knishes, strudel and other desserts. Budd expects bagels to be among the star attractions.
"They're real New York bagels," he says, adding that for some reason - which may have to do with the air or the water - "you can't make good bagels here."
"We'll get the (frozen) dough from H & H Bagels in New York" and complete the three-step broil-boil-bake process by baking them here, he explains.
He'll have all the breads available frozen as well, "so (the customer) can have that wonderful smell of fresh baked breads at home." All baked goods available at the deli will also be found as dough in the market's freezer section, along with detailed instructions as to how to bake them at home.
Budd's goal is to create "a place where people can congregate." All food will be sold in a take-out container, but slate-floored indoor and outdoor patios will provide customers an upscale spot to sit and nosh. Additional d‚cor items will come from what Budd describes as the "gorgeous Judaic artwork from the (Scottsdale Kosher Market's) gift shop."
It's been an exciting project for Budd, whose background as an aerospace engineer may not have been strictly on-subject but, he points out, "Engineering teaches problem solving and not to be afraid to tackle a problem that seems overwhelming." His position as supervisor of the deli, market and gift shop grew out of his volunteer efforts for Chabad, operating the Passover Pantry. "Chabad spearheaded this venture and made the connections for me to open it," he says, relating that there had been strong demand in the community for a deli-market.
Budd describes his supervision of Scottsdale Kosher Market as an opportunity to do a mitzvah.
"We provide people with a connection to their Judaism. Somebody can taste or smell a food that reminds them of their childhood," he says. "I've been passionate about business before, but never as to how it affects the spirituality of a community."
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