Mesh Cafe Oct 10, 2017

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From Captain Stuart Green

On a warm October evening that felt more like May, fifteen appreciative guests dined at the MESH Café. A relaxed and level-headed Chef Melissa Elbaum cooked up a delicious main course of baked cod in citrus marinade, supplemented by food left over from the Syrian Supper Club – hummus, baba ganoush, crudité, pita, rice, pasta, green beans, green salad, rice pudding, and fruit.
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Mesh Cafe Sept 12, 2017

mesh 2017 sept12

From Captain Stuart Green:

It was a gala opening night of the 2017-18 MESH Cafe season at Shomrei. Sixteen guests joined us for dinner.

Chef Rachel Kanter prepared a sumptuous meal of roasted and marinated salmon fillets, orzo with pesto sauce, green salad, and cookies and fresh fruit. All this was prefaced by hearty lentil/barley/vegetable soup which had been frozen and repurposed from IHN. There was plenty of food for seconds and take-homes. Continue reading

Mesh Cafe Jan 10, 2017

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From Captain Stuart Green:

On a blustery January night, twenty guests joined us for the MESH cafe. The first course, classic Tuscan minestrone soup, was prepared by the gang from STOM. Lynne Kurzweil, assisted by Melissa Elbaum, cooked the rest — mouth-watering maple-crusted chicken legs, sumptuous farm-raised baked sweet potatoes, creamy salade de chou (cole slaw), and for dessert, madeleines and other curated cookies and locally-sourced (ie, Shop Rite) fruit salad.

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Mesh Cafe June 7, 2016

MESH 2016 june 7

From Captain Stuart Green:

Whether or not they had voted in the New Jersey presidential primary (and, to judge by the dinner conversation, quite a few had), 24 guests joined us for Shomrei’s MESH Cafe. Celebrity chefs Aileen Grossberg and Lynne Kurzweil, using a resourceful combination of leftovers and fresh ingredients, whipped up a hearty meal of salsa and chips, green salad, whole grain bread, shepherd’s pie, roasted vegetables (cauliflower, brussels sprouts, peppers, and carrots), and cinnamon crisps served with pareve ice cream and fruit. The chefs seemed to be having so much fun cooking and schmoozing that they hardly wanted to go home! Shomrei super teens Amalia, Gus, Isaac, Matt, Sam, and Roy handled the setup, serving, and cleanup, with help from MESH staffers Adrienne, Bonny, Andi and Dev.  Your captain, who’s been away for a while, was impressed by how smoothly everything ran. Indeed, there was relatively little for him to do. If only the presidential primaries could be so pleasant!

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Mesh Cafe June 23, 2015

MESH June 23 2015Despite high humidity, thunder showers, and Montclair High graduation, Shomrei’s MESH Cafe performed with its usual skill and panache, serving dinner last night to eighteen appreciative guests. Sarita Eisenberg and Sarah Steindel cooked it all and helped serve and clean up. Linda Ariel served as head waiter. Lou Hammerman was chief grocery shopper, pot scrubber, and bottle washer.

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Mesh Cafe April 28, 2015

Report from Captain Stuart Green:

Last night was a bit of a challenge for MESH at Shomrei.  John Lasiter, aided earlier in the evening by Jerilyn Marguiles, cooked a scrumptious, Dominican Republican-inspired meal of salsa, guacamole, and chips, “Pollo Asado Chicken con Arroz”, plantains, grilled carrot and pepper melange, rice, and blueberry galette. Unfortunately, none of our regular volunteers were there to help serve it or clean up, and the MESH crew was also short-handed. Fortunately, battle-tested Sam Green, less than 24 hours off the plane from Israel, came to the aid of his old man, and along with John, who stayed late as well, did a yeoman’s job of serving and dish washing.

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