‘Valet’ brings kosher eats to the front door
Hungry for some empanadas, turnip pickles, Syrian delicacies, or date rolls for dessert to eat with your specialty coffee?
A newly launched service, Kosher Valet, allows consumers to order home-delivery of more than 300 food items.
“The idea was born out of the tendency of many people to visit various stores to get each item that they like best from each store,” said founder and CEO Joe Danziger, who compared it to Amazon Fresh with a kosher twist. “It is such a convenience and a timesaver to have this one-stop shopping.”
In addition to sourcing items from stores, Kosher Valet also works with home food makers specializing in one item — ice pops, granola, and pickles among them — many of whom are located in Brooklyn and have kosher certification.
“The reaction has been just amazing,” Danziger told NJJN just weeks after starting his endeavor.
Although the service now operates only in Deal and Lakewood, reaction has been so positive, said Danziger, a Long Branch native, there are plans to expand in September to Manhattan, the Five Towns of Long Island, and Brooklyn, where the business will be headquartered.
Danziger said he also hopes to serve Jewish communities like those in Teaneck/Englewood and Edison/Highland Park, as well as other areas of Monmouth County.
“People have been contacting us through Instagram from places like Berlin and Spain,” he said. “I got a call this week from someone in Seattle who was planning a wedding and was interested in having us ship some delicacies out there.”
With a background in computer science, the 39-year-old graduate of Hillel Yeshiva in Ocean and Rutgers University said he was able to fairly quickly set up the business and website. Danziger lives in Brooklyn with his wife, Julie, although he spends his summers at the Jersey Shore. He is currently staying with his parents, Mike and Roz Danziger, in Long Branch.
“We serve as the middle man between vendor and consumer,” explained Danziger. “Each vendor gets an order and at the end of the week we pick up all the filled orders under refrigeration, then sort and pack each order in dry ice, and our drivers deliver them right to our customers’ doors.”
Kosher Valet charges a 10 percent delivery fee, with a $5 minimum.
“A lot of stores we deal with have some of the best prices anywhere for these items, sometimes even lower than in their stores,” said Danziger. Some are offering introductory 10 to 15 percent discounts this summer.
Some of his vendors, based in Deal, offer “authentic” delicacies popular with that community’s large Syrian-Jewish population. Danziger himself is half Ashkenazi and half Syrian.
Danziger said popular dishes include appetizers ranging from knishes and empanadas to a variety of different types of fried chicken to the Sephardi bourekas, kibbeh, laham agene (meat pies) with sweet and sour sauce, and samboosak (filo dough filled with meat or cheese). There is also a large selection of salads, cold brewed coffees, and infused oils.
Deliveries are made Fridays for orders placed on-line (koshervalet.com) or by phone (646-362-6162) by noon Thursdays.
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