Greenville Jewish Film Festival Kick Off Event 

"In Search of Israeli Cuisine"

In Search of Israeli Cuisine is a portrait of the Israeli people told through food. It puts a literal face on the culture of Israel. The film profiles chefs, home cooks, vintners, and cheese-makers drawn from the more than 100 cultures that make up Israel today - Jewish, Arab, Muslim, Christian, Druze. A rich and human story of the people emerges from their food.

An important part of the story is diversity. Featuring a variety of Israelis in every region of the country – the filmmakers shot in over 100 locations – from the Lebanese, Syrian, and Egyptian borders: to Akko on the Mediterranean, Tiberius on the Sea of Galilee, Ezuz, a tiny outpost in the harsh Negev Desert to the heart of Jerusalem, and the hip and happening Tel Aviv. Both secular and religious Jews are profiled, including one of the few Jewish-Muslim couples who together cook their very personal food, Majda, near Jerusalem. An old-fashioned Christian Arab tahini (sesame paste) factory in Nazareth run by two very modern women. A Druze wedding in a mountain town in the north. Mike, helping pick olives from an ancient tree with a long stick, is admonished by his Druze host: “Please do not hurt the olive tree. Be gentle.” Chastened, Mike apologizes to the tree.

$25.00 per ticket includes a sampling of foods from the region and the movie.