Kosher passion
With Sydney customers beginning to employ interstate kosher caterers to supply their function needs, CHANTAL ABITBOL talks to key players about the costs of kosher catering in Sydney.
SYDNEY’S leading kosher caterer, Passion8, is being dogged by claims it has a monopoly on the local market and is driving up the price of kosher functions by securing privileged arrangements with venues.
Widely considered Sydney’s best out of just a handful of kosher-certified caterers, Passion8 is currently the “preferred supplier” for a number of venues across Sydney, including Doltone House in Pyrmont and The Wharf Restaurant in Walsh Bay.But critics argue this arrangement is blocking out other kosher vendors who offer more competitive prices, and that it is forcing clients who are hooked on a venue and kosher fare to be signed up with Passion8.¬†Many also complain that Passion8’s prices are out of specific venues, or even causing some to totally opt out for the cheaper, non-kosher alternative.
Passion8’s Steve Edelmuth, however, has strongly denied the “monopoly” claims. “No-one is forced to use us,” he told The AJN.¬†”Considering the limited market and the restrictions that attract the kosher catering market, there is definitely competition.”¬†The NSW Kashrut Authority (KA) said Passion8 had already come under review by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and was not considered a monopoly in the “technical sense of the word”. But that’s not to say the KA isn’t concerned. After receiving numerous complaints about what some people perceive to be Passsion8’s apparent stranglehold, the KA recently wrote to Sydney’s KA-accredited venues, threatening to review their kosher status if they didn’t allow access to “all KA licensees” and give kosher clientele the “freedom of choice in selecting a caterer”. “Clearly the KA deplores any practice that makes it difficult for any KA licensee,” KA president Baron Revelman told The AJN.¬†But Edelmuth maintained Passion8 has never signed an exclusive contract with any venue. Certain venues have chosen Passion8 as their “preferred supplier”, he said, but that’s their right.¬†”[It’s] pretty much the same as a preferred Halal caterer or a preferred fruit and vegetable supplier,” he said. Passion8’s competitors, however, who hold similar Gold Licensed accreditation, argued they’re being unfairly locked out of the market and clients are paying the price.¬†”It’s a very sad state of affairs,” said Catering by Flavours’ director Lance Hurvitz.¬† Hurvitz said his company offered kosher catering at significantly less -— about 20 per cent -— and potential clients were missing out.¬†”They literally have only one option. If they want a function at a specific venue, they are being forced to pay Passion8’s prices or lower their catering standards drastically.” Unlike Passion8, however, Flavours does not hold HACCP Australia Food Safety Accreditation, which Hurvitz contends is not required at most venues.¬†Regardless, Flavours was in the process of gaining the certificate to match Passion8, he said. This month, she paid for Melbourne’s Passionate -— similar in name to its Sydney rival -— to cater a 110-person bar mitzvah function, with a three-course meal including alcohol.¬†On top of that, she covered additional costs, such as travel and two-nights accommodation. She estimated the price tag was less than $100 per head and about $7000 cheaper than Passion8.¬†In the end, she said the quality was comparable.¬†”The desserts and hors d’ oeuvres were as good, if not better. There was a small problem with presentation with the main course. Passion8 is a cut above, but I still would have gone with Passionate in Melbourne. You just couldn’t compare the costs.” Melbourne’s Passionate chef David Trakhtman said it was good business for him.¬†He prepared most of the food in Melbourne, drove up to Sydney the same day in a refrigerated truck and stored it in a fridge overnight at The Yeshiva’s Big Kitchen.¬†The next day, he was ready to go. “We’re not the cheapest kosher caterer in Melbourne.¬† However, we’re more affordable than Sydney prices,” he said. “When you do a wedding or bar mitzvah, you want it to be done professionally and reliably and people can’t pay through the roof.”¬†Trakhtman said he could see it becoming an emerging trend -— Melbourne caterers working Sydney events -— but Sydney’s kosher authorities remain sceptical. “The KA believes that if it becomes widespread practice it may have some negative effects on existing kosher caterers in Sydney,” said Revelman.¬†”Consumers also need to ensure that they are comparing ‘apples with apples’ when obtaining competing quotes for functions, to ensure they are receiving the same from all those from whom they obtain quotes.”¬†But if price discrepancies continue to force Sydney’s kosher clientele to look interstate, the KA said it has no other choice but to welcome them “regardless of their home address”.¬†
“We field calls every single day to quote on functions, and this is becoming the main stumbling block. If we do 10 quotes, we have to knock off five of them straight away because Passion8 is tied up with that venue.”
Sydney’s kosher clientele are also getting frustrated.¬†One woman, who preferred not to be named, said she became so disheartened with Passion8’s prices and the lack of quality choice in Sydney, she decided the most cost-effective option was to find an exclusive-free venue and hire a Melbourne caterer for the job.
 
Photo: Grandma Moses and Starks proprietor Lawrence Hoffman.       Photo by: Susannah Hart
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