what to eat at a treif BBQ?

lilacdreams

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 12:15 am

I and the kids are invited to a treif BBQ for July 4th at my dh's work. I want to bring food so we can eat something - but OTOH I dont want to bring bbq foods so that it wont be a maris ayin to the other jews who will be there....any good ideas for what to bring so my kids and me and dh can eat, without feeling like miskainim?
thanks

Tamiri

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 12:40 am

lilacdreams wrote:

thanks tamiri. Some good ideas.
Yes its in Israel - dh has a US Dept of State position at the American Consulate......

"miskainim" might not have been the best word but my kids are moaning that we cant bring our own bbq!! (that wont be happening!).

Ah..... an American BBQ (can he do me protekzia? I have to be there tomorrow to renew passports Very Happy

). You can buy baked beans and eat them room temp. Cut up veggies. Melon, as noted. Grapes. Salsa with chips. Fun foods. I think you should write to your senator about this abomination. Are you SURE it's not going to be catered kosher? That just sounds "off".

lilacdreams

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 1:08 am

lol, it might sound "off" but that's the way it is....normally if its a small group getting together, they are more accomodating but when its everyone we are in serious minority.

Dh wont be in passport section tomorrow but if you really need help PM me and I will call him Smile

kids are more happy with the ideas I just threw at them (from your ideas) although I still have one crying she wants to take her own BBQ and have her father BBQ for us, lol! We're going to take some cold cuts in lachmaniyot too. tnx

lilacdreams

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 1:08 am

lilacdreams

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 3:48 am

okthis is what we're taking:
cold cuts, lachmaniot, ketchup and mustard, huge bag of chips, pickles, coleslaw, baked beans and the quinoa salad that was in Mishpacha this week.
I was also going to bring my own plastic ware - just incase theirs is on the table with the treif meats etc and incase it gets splashed or touched by greasy hands- but my dh thinks I am being a weirdo......but he left the decision up to me, whether to take or not. WWYD?

Isramom8

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 4:31 am

I'd probably opt not to go. But if you go, I like Tamiri's ideas for bringing food that looks different. You can bring distinctive plasticware too.

How about: pickles in cans, chocolate chip cookies, brownies you make quickly from a mix, Doritos...

But what will the atmosphere be like? Who will they run around with? Do you want them hearing secular music especially in the Three Weeks?

Mimisinger

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 4:37 am

Lol - we are going to a bbq at dh's job today. We are bringing bagels Smile

We were going to bring (kosher) subway, but then we figured that would get complicated. Then we thought about bringing fleishig but were worried about how it would keep. So bagels it is. We don't really care about being really weird, but you do what you gotta do.

freidasima

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 4:40 am

One of my kids has something like this all the time. It's an event one has to go to, and often one just does what one does and thats that. you learn not to listen to the music. you learn to ignore the treifes on the table. You learn to live off diet coke and celery sticks. If you have kids it's harder, I would just take sandwitches and that's that.

Yocheved84

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 10:21 pm

Take EVERYTHING you would need for an outdoor picnic--plastic plates, forks, knives, spoons, juice boxes, etc. Would the kids eat room-temperature BBQ? What if you made hot dogs or hamburgers, and put them in aluminum foil and a container to maintain their temperature? This way they are eating the 'same' food as others.

This sounds like a lot of annoying work for you, but I hope you and the family have fun!

HindaRochel

Thu, Jul 01 2010, 10:59 pm

Maybe bring your own little grill and do corn and chicken wings? As well as the other stuff that the others have suggested.

If you bring your own mini grill and have your own plates of food etc. and don't go to the big table where all the food is spread, I think people will know you are eating your own food.

lilacdreams

Fri, Jul 02 2010, 2:18 am

great ideas ladies!
so we went yesterday and had a really nice time. We found our own table to sit at, whereupon I took out a massive spread (including plasticware, see post above) which was more than enough food for us all. The lady who organized it came to apologize that it wasnt kosher and she hoped that one day they woud do a kosher event. I told her to not worry because we had brought everything plus the kitchen sink and we were 100% fine.

They had tons of fun games for the kids and the crowd is always a nice crowd- well behaved kids (most are really nice kids from consulate families, even if they aren't jewish, they are always respectful of other people and their customs).

There was some light music in the background but honestly we're not talking about a disco here, it wasn't loud, or continous and I dont think my kids even heard it because they were so busy with some water guns in a different area, that were supplied for the kids' entertainment! Many people have a heter to listen to music that isn't live anyway....but as I said it was so far in the background I think I only remember one song - the rest of the time I was too distarcted to even hear it. It was mainly a fun afternoon in the gardens with some coworkers and their families. There were some other frum families also - so we shmoozed for a bit.

thanks for all your suggestions - my kids only felt deprived at dessert - there were sometruely stunning bakery cakes, and I had forgotten to bring dessert- but all in all they were fine!

lilacdreams

Fri, Jul 02 2010, 2:21 am

HindaRochel wrote:

I davka didnt want to be eating bbq because it would be moras ayin. I didnt want anyone (jewish or not) seeing us eat the same food as them incase anyone would think cv it was non kosher food- or worse would think it WAS kosher - becuse we were eating it.

Tamiri

Fri, Jul 02 2010, 3:11 am

I bet the bakery cakes were kosher.
We needed protekzia. We thought we HAD IT ALL, but wouldn't you know it: they want the ORIGINAL birth certificates for both kids we renewed passports for, even though they are both registered, both have passports, both BROUGHT their passports + Israeli passports + both parents + both parents' passports. The U.S. beauroracy makes no sense. The good news is that they will allow us to mail the documents, which is a big surprise right there. Coupled with the fact that we don't need the passports any time soon, I'd say it was a productive day.

Oh, and BTW with regards to your comment about non-Jewish children. No comment LOL

lilacdreams

Fri, Jul 02 2010, 5:42 am

my comment about the non jewish children was in response to one of the previous posters saying "But what will the atmosphere be like? Who will they run around with", which actually ruffled my feathers a tad. They aren't all jewish, but they are still good kids.

I looked for some kind o fpackaging or chechsher on the cakes but found nothing. But even if they were kosher they were sitting amongst all the trief food and I was worried maybe someone had dripped or spilled something trief on it. I didnt ask a sheilah about it, but that is what I figured on the spot.