Shabbat at The Kitchen
Return to Eden
What’s special about shabbat at The Kitchen? We design every aspect with one goal: moving everyone closer to God and each other. Our music, prayers, and rituals are built to provide access to the tradition of shabbat so we can return to Eden every week. And now, we’ll have a prayerbook to help us go farther than ever.
Shabbat is How
“I’ve been to shabbat services in other places,” some might say. “It’s never anything like this. What makes yours so special?”
We think there’s a difference between tourists and pilgrims. Tourists stand on the side out of the way, pilgrims get as close as possible. We don’t start by asking if your mother was Jewish, we just want to know if you’re ready to show up as a pilgrim. We call this ‘tradition for everyone,’ and this idea, found in every part of our shabbat, is what makes it special.
Of all the holy experiences we create at The Kitchen, shabbat is where we begin. There’s an elegant genius in shabbat—it can bring all kinds of people together, no matter what it is we need. Shabbat is how we keep all the disparate pieces of our lives together.
When we enter shabbat, we remember Eden is real. And when we have the experience of building a holy place week after week, we realize that while the gate to the garden looks locked, if we want to enter, we can. Shabbat is the key.
The Book
The Kitchen is known for pushing boundaries, and our project of creating a third edition of our Siddur is no different. This spiritual guidebook will be the first ever in North America to include an integration of Sephardi and Ashkenazi prayers into a single nusach.
We invite you to sponsor our siddur in honor, or memory, of loved ones, friends, and the community. Each book will receive a personalized dedication on the inside of the front cover.
We sing rare and beautiful Sephardi and Ashkenazi melodies and prayers, accompanied by two ouds, the best percussionist in the land, not to mention a suite of talented Gen X and Millenials. Kitchen-ites, musicians, and clergy from many backgrounds all sit and pray together. And this year, we’re taking this tradition and accessibility further than ever with a completely reimagined Kitchen Siddur.
We wanted to give you a snapshot of what we’ve built so we made this live recording (read: no overdubs) for you. We hope you like it but we still think you need to come to experience it for yourself.
The Music
Invitation to Eden
Kitchen Shabbat for Honored Guests From Far and Wide
We love our siddur, we love our recording but you won’t understand unless you join us. So, we’re throwing open the Kitchen gates on Lag Ba’Omer 5785 / May 16-17 2025 for a full Kitchen shabbat + the following day to think and talk about it all.
May 16th
Invitation to Eden
Kitchen Shabbat for Honored Guests From Far and Wide
We love our siddur, we love our recording but you won’t understand unless you join us. So, we’re throwing open the Kitchen gates on Lag Ba’Omer 5785 / May 16-17 2025 for a full Kitchen shabbat + the following day to think and talk about it all.
Kabbalat Shabbat + Dinner
Time
6:15 PM Kabbalat Shabbat + Ma’ariv
8:00 PM Shabbat Dinner
Torah
Our Rabbi, Noa Kushner, or a visiting scholar, will drash/teach on the week’s torah portion. If you want to hear – or read – torah, come back for Shabbat AM. Interested in what you’ll be learning? You can always find the week’s torah portion here.
Dinner
We daven, celebrate & dine! Dinner is (usually) by Chef Chris Ratcliff, who creates a unique menu inspired by his trip to local farmers’ markets. Our dinners are truly farm-to-table.
May 17th
Shabbat Morning + Havdalah + Concert
Time
9:30 AM Shabbat Morning + Torah Service
12:00 PM Kiddush Lunch
Torah
The torah portion of the week can be found here. Rabbi Noa Kushner & a bonus drash from a b’nai mitzvah, will drash/teach on the week’s torah portion.
Kiddush Lunch
Everyone is invited to stay after services! Coffee, bagels, schmears, salads, and sweets.
Concert + Havdalah
7:00 PM
A beautiful havdalah service followed by a piyyut concert with paytanim, hazzanim, and musicians from around the world.
May 18th
Conference for visitors
Time
9:00-10:30 AM
Lecture with Devin Naar over breakfast
11:30 AM–12:30 PM
Panel 1: Siddur Editors
12:30–1:30 PM Lunch
1:30-2:30 PM
Panel 2: Sephardi practice in the US & Egalitarian contexts
2:45-4:00 PM Breakout Sessions
Special guests include:
Dr. Devin Naar, Isaac Alhadeff Professor in Sephardic Studies, Associate Professor of History, and faculty at the Stroum Center for Jewish Studies at the University of Washington
Seattle, Washington
Heftsi Cohen-Montagu, Simon Montagu-Cohen and Osnat Bensoussan Farouz of Degel Yehuda and Arevot
Jerusalem, Israel
Tamia Menez B’Chiri Hineni
Paris, France
Isaac Montagu of the London Sephardi Egalitarian Minyan and editor of Sidduré Or
London, England
Rabbi Yosef Goldman of Hadar’s Rising Song Institute and Hebrew Union College
New York, New York
Sarah Bunin Benor, Ph.D., Director, Jewish Language Project; Professor of Contemporary Jewish Studies and Linguistics- Jewish Language Project
Los Angeles, CA
Daniel Cayre- Founder of Kanisse, A Modern Sephardic + Mizrahi Community; Editor, Mahzor Zemirot HaMizrah
Ruben Shimonov- Founding Executive Director Sephardic-Mizrahi Q Network, American Sephardi Federation
Dr. Samuel Torjman Thomas- Asefa, New York Andalus Ensemble
and more to join!
