Want kosher gefilte fish in Cologne? Go to that nice Iranian Muslim
COLOGNE, Germany — In Germany’s fourth-biggest city, the only person providing Jews with kosher products is a Muslim from Iran.
Out of his small convenience store around the corner from Cologne’s Roonstrasse synagogue, Tehran native Kambiz Alizadeh sells frozen poultry and red meat, wines, cakes, pickles, olives, gefilte fish, crackers, cakes, soup nuts and many other items bearing kosher certifications. In the kind of fridge usually reserved for beer and soft drinks, he stores fresh goods such as hummus, eggplant and tomato spread, and a variety of soft and hard cheeses.
“We started with kosher sweets from Belgium and over the years we kept on adding more and more items,” he recalled on a recent afternoon as he dealt with frequent interruptions to deal with clients. “Originally, it was the rabbi’s idea. He always stopped by my shop after taking his daughters to the nearby park. One day he asked me if I could get kosher wine gums (pastille-style sweets). I said I had never heard of them, but that I was happy to get them for him if he told me where I could find them.”
The rabbi, Netanel Teitelbaum (who no longer serves in Cologne) made the connection to a vendor in Belgium and since then Alizadeh’s store has steadily increased his foray into the kosher market. He has even spent time with kosher food supervisors to learn more about Jewish dietary laws.
Today, his shop gets kosher certified goods from Israel, the Netherlands, Poland and the Czech Republic and offers some 250 products, including a range of 50 wines. “Two years ago an Israeli vintner was here, [from] Teperberg. He was happy to see I had his wines.”
http://www.timesofisrael.com/want-kosher-gefilte-fish-in-cologne-go-to-that-nice-iranian-muslim/
