Dov Bar's Volchin

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Dov Bar's Volchin

Food
The 1928 Polish Business Survey for Volchin lists a R. Stawski in the food business.

The Bread of Jewish Bakers
On Fridays, Shmuel Englander and his parents erected a stand in the market square to sell the challah they baked for Sabbath.

When we visited Volchin in 1997, the old people all remembered the Englander bakery. They all bought their bread there.

A Joke about Tzimes
My mother, Tema Stavsky Birenboim used to tell me a joke: a child ran into the synagogue and told his mother: Mame, de tzimes tzigecocht Azoy vi drek.“Mother, the tzimes is overcooked and it is like shit”. The mother replied: “Sha shteel, in Beit Hamidrash ret men Azoy turm verter? Ich vil bald gebn dir a patch az du vist bekaken zach!” “Be quiet. In the Bet Hamidrash you use such dirty words? I will hit you so hard that you will shit in your pants!”

And my mother would laugh when she told it to us!

A Popular Snack
In the Shenk, my mother, Tema Stavsky Birenboim used to prepare the famous treat made of potatoes – Ilnik (Ilnook in Belarusian) That was a large pancake, the size of a frying pan, in which it was cooked. Then cut into triangles, like pizza in our time. That was a delicacy for Shenk customers, who were mainly Gentiles.

Beer
My mother, Tema Stavsky Birenboim learned to drink beer in the Shenk.

Editor's Notes: Bread: During my visit to the area in 2007, at least two people spontaneously mentioned the high quality of Jewish-baked bread. Jewish bakers were still missed. I also found that braided loaves, still called challah by the Belarusians, could be purchased in local bakeries. The taste and consistency of these were disappointing. The Yiddish rendering in “A Joke...” are approximate and the translations also might benefit from further input. tzimes: a traditional Eastern European Jewish dish of cooked carrots, sweetened, sometimes with the addition of fruit or meat (more here). Bet Hamidrash: religious study house (more here). Ilnik: a dish of this description cannot be identified by this name, even in consultation with a Belarusian from the region. Perhaps the reference could have been to a pie-style Belarusian potato babka.

Page Last Updated: 11-Apr-2012