I always had an affinity to cooking and loved to work with food in general. I guess I had an early exposure to herring from age seven

The scrunching of my nose gives me a headache as I recall my first experience eating herring. Onions and fish and brine remain in the recesses of my food memory. My mother, ever the mom who didn’t want to waste food, served me a chopped herring sandwich — in a pita, no less (how’s that for mixing culinary cultures). This memory may explain why I wasn’t that enthusiastic about my upcoming interview. Sure, Naftali Engel built an empire of herring and lox to feed the most discerning of palates, but… herring.

Ladies, I promise that after you read this article (and hopefully taste his herrings), you too will join the club.

Where did your herring aspirations begin?

My father was the gabbai and president of our shul in Kew Gardens Hills, and I set up the kiddush every Shabbos. I developed a real love for herring. I always had an affinity to cooking and loved to work with food in general. I guess I had an early exposure to herring from age seven!

When I studied in Israel, I couldn’t find anything comparable to the American-style herring I loved. I really missed that taste from home. Baruch Hashem, early on in my year, I visited my brother, who lives in Tzfas, for Shabbos. At the kiddush after Shacharis, I tasted the most amazing herring. I asked to meet its creator. He was very generous and gave me his recipe, which includes instructions to dance with the fish, say Tehillim with the fish, and learn a little Likutei Moharan.

Did you execute these “instructions”?

Well, I definitely learned a lot about the importance of understanding why we eat in general. This chassid in Tzfas taught me that eating is an essential part of our avodas Hashem if we do it with the right intentions.

On my way back from Tzfas, I stopped off at the shuk to get the necessary supplies, returned to my dorm, and dug into making my own herring. My grandfather was an Ostrover chassid who became Gerrer when the chassidus died out, my father is connected to Lubavitch, and I consider myself a chassid of the Baal Shem Tov, so I thought “the Rebbe’s Choice” would be a great name, since it’s a reminder of how many mitzvos we can do with eating. Rav Tzvi Hirsch of Ziditchov said, “When I was young I wished I could accomplish with eating what I do with davening. Now I wish I could accomplish with davening what I do with eating.” (And I would like to think that these Rebbes would choose my herring first!)

Wait, go back. You made herring in a small enclosure like a dorm?

(Laughs) True. Herring is made by pickling the fish with vinegar or curing it with salt. The massive amount of onions in the recipe doesn’t help with the scent either. Plus, we had a bunch of other ingredients to make funky flavors. I can’t say that my roommates loved the smell, but they were happy to look the other way when they got free herring out of the deal.

Eventually I started selling it too. Guys from other yeshivos reached out, and I realized that I had a business rolling.