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Michael and Alysse
Many thanks for your invite and for the latkes along with the delicious selection of apple sauces. Here is my review of your excellent party:
My wife, Alysse, and I were delighted to be invited to a latke dinner hosted by Zev Kalin. In addition to Zev, there were five guests, four of whom I already knew. The latkes were freshly fried and delicious—“freshly” in the fullest sense, since part of the evening involved guests frying them themselves. This hands-on element added a convivial, interactive quality to the gathering and made it easy to engage with one another. There were eight different flavours of apple sauce as well as sour cream to dress the latkes with.
Zev’s home is warm and welcoming, with beautiful artwork throughout, much of it by Indigenous artists, and he generously gave us a tour. There were also many flowers to admire. Conversation flowed easily, ranging over familiar and new topics, and had a distinctly Jewish flavour, as many of the guests were Jewish.
Here in Ottawa, we live in close physical proximity to our neighbours, yet density alone does not guarantee meaningful connection; it can just as easily foster isolation. Fast-paced schedules, long commutes and/or telecommuting, and high housing costs often push people to prioritize work and recovery over social life, leaving little time or energy to cultivate friendships. Many Canadians, particularly in cities, find themselves lonelier than they expected to be in adulthood, even while surrounded by others. Making new friends as an adult can be difficult: meeting people over dinner and moving beyond superficial contact often requires deliberate effort.
The dinner was part of a broader initiative by Zev to explore ways of encouraging people to go out more and expand their social circles. Zev’s project seeks to address this by connecting those willing to host strangers for dinner with those looking for opportunities to meet new people. During the evening, Zev demonstrated his new website—a “dinner with strangers” platform designed to bring together hosts willing to open their homes and guests eager to meet new people. The goal of the site, still under construction, is to promote social engagement, with particular attention to older adults.
Donald
I recently attended two dinner events that Zev hosted at his house.
Both events were a latke prepare and dine. Guests would take part in preparing the latkes and eating them. Other food and refreshments were also served. I got to do some of the cooking and learned a new dish.
I met new people and had interesting conversations with them.
Zev’s house was spacious and well furnished for the guests and the event. Background music was kept low enough so as to not interfere with conversations. The kitchen was well equipped for preparing the latkes, and the dining room table was a great place to eat them.
On street parking was plentiful and reasonably close to Zev’s house.
I would definitely attend another such event at Zev’s house.
Noga-Aliza Abarbanel
Vice President of the Ottawa Messianic Fellowship
Zev’s Latkes party was absolutely enjoyable. Relaxed atmosphere, pleasant people, lots of food and drinks, chocolates and nice company. In other words, everything you look for in a party. Thank you Zev. Be blessed with many blessings