pastries, muffins etc
Question
Following up on the recent post "Restaurants" --(thanks Joe for asking what's on everyone's mind! And thank you Rabbi for answering with such detail...), can we go to places like (eg., in NYC) Cafe Europa, Pergola, Cosi, Starbucks/Second Cup and other similar eateries in USA and Canada and: 1. order french pastries, like croissants, or brownies, muffins and other baked goods? 2. I know we should stay clear away from cheese, but what else should we verify that these products DO NOT contain? 3. also, in general, which oils are OK and which are NOT Ok? or are they all OK in civilized countries? 4. same as #3 for butter. Thank you in advance.
Answer
Answered by Aaron Abadi1) Sure, but find out what's in it. You need to confirm no animal fat, and no cheese. When you go to a private shop and you ask the owner about something, he can possibly lie to you. You can't trust him in most cases. But if you ask a waiter or the girl behind the counter, you can trust them. They have nothing to gain from lying. 2) lard, animal fat, and cheese. 3) same. All vegetable oil, canola, corn, olive, you name it. Just not animal fat & lard. 4) Butter in the US & Canada & civilized countries that claim to use only cow's milk is fine. We all need to learn these laws and it takes a little getting used to, but it beats eating things we are not allowed, just because we don't trust the Baloney that our people feed us. AA