Rehearsal Dinner
Photo By: This is Feeling Photography // Venue: Kaskades Hotel South Beach
As a Jewish couple, it was important that everything about their wedding followed Jewish traditions. Rehearsal dinner guests arrived on the rooftop terrace while the bride was finishing practicing the Jewish tradition of “Circling the Groom.” From the “Ceremony Traditions” section of their wedding program, we learned Jewish belief is that . . .
"A man is not complete without his bride. As the bride circles her groom seven times,
she completes him and makes him whole.
She is also breaking down the barriers to his heart,
just as the walls of Jericho collapsed after seven marches around the city wall for seven days."
Wine and hors d'oeuvres were served as dinner guests arrived. Eventually it was time for guests to find their seats at the U-shaped tables set for 50. Also important to the couple was that their Friday evening rehearsal dinner be a traditional Shabbat family meal, as is every Friday evening meal for the couple. Shabbat, Hebrew for Sabbath, begins at nightfall on Friday and lasts until nightfall on Saturday. Families gather together during this time for the seventh day of the Jewish week--the day of rest. The Shabbat dinner ushers in the Sabbath by lighting two candles and reciting a blessing over the challah (braided bread) and a Kiddush (meaning sanctification) cup of wine.
Photo By: Loveography
Soon the ceremonial portion of the gathering was complete and vegetable dishes were being passed around. Guests not of the same family traditions assumed this was a vegetarian meal. They enjoyed baba, ganoush, hummus, olives, grape leaves, eggplant and more.
Maybe twenty minutes later, the family announced that dinner was ready on the buffet line. What? Guests looked around at each other in comic shock. Already full, they made their way to the line for more beautiful Mediterranean (with Moroccan flair) dishes of chicken, brisket, salmon, potatoes, salads and fruit. After these dishes, there was, of course, tiramisu, chocolate cake and baklava. Did guests have to eat all of it? No. But did they? Oh, yes! The entire meal was prepared and catered by Miryam and her staff at NEW TIME CATERING, an International Kosher Food catering company and restaurant in North Miami.