Tag Archives: travel

Toveling Utensils in a Lake or River

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Summer 2013

Q: I am traveling, and there is no keilim mikvah in this area. May I tovel new utensils in a lake or river?

A: Metal, glass and glazed ceramic utensils which are purchased from a non-Jew and are used in the preparation and consumption of food require tevila before use.[1] A person may tovel utensils in “spring water” – water that flows naturally from under the ground. If a river has such water as its source, he can tovel his utensils in the river.[2] The river must contain at least forty se’ah of water, which calculates as 175 gallons of water.[3] An ocean or sea is halachically considered to be “spring water.”[4] Therefore, a person may tovel utensils in an ocean, sea, or river which has such water as its source. However, regarding a river which has “spring water” as its source, […]

Starbucks, Dunkin’ & Other Coffee Shops: Getting Your Caffeine Boost In-Town and On-the-Road

By: Rabbi Baruch Beyer

Summer 2023

The STAR-K Hotline receives no end of calls from coffee heads who dote on their daily cup of joe, whether from a local Starbucks or a Dunkin’ on the road. Recent changes in Starbucks’ company policy vis-à-vis kosher have further elevated the confusion for the kosher coffee connoisseur. Let’s dive in to clear out some of the haze.

Unflavored roasted coffee beans, whole and ground, are considered kosher without a hechsher. Bearing this in mind, buying a cup of unflavored regular or decaf coffee should not present any kashrus issues. Some coffee vendors, however, sell kosher and non-kosher items, like bacon and ham-filled sandwiches. The keilim used for coffee and the treif items are at times washed together, causing blios (absorbed tastes) from the treif utensil to enter the coffee equipment.

For example, at Starbucks, it’s been established that the brew basket that holds the coffee grounds while the coffee is […]

The Traveler’s Halachic Guide to Hotels (Including Guidelines for Shabbos and Pesach)

By: Rabbi Zvi Goldberg

Updated February 2024

Yosef chose the hotel he was staying in for its many amenities, not the least of which was the free Continental Breakfast it offered its guests. Surely, when kosher symbols on products are becoming more and more prevalent, he wouldn’t starve! The breakfast menu included cereals, pancakes, waffles, muffins, pre-cut fruits and vegetables, hardboiled eggs, as well as hot coffee and juices. Can Yosef eat anything offered on the Continental Breakfast menu, or should he prepare his own breakfast using the microwave and coffeemaker in his hotel room?

Chana’s brother’s bar mitzvah, held in a hotel during Shabbos, turned out to be a real nightmare! The closet light went on automatically when she opened the closet door; the housekeeper had turned off the light in her room, preventing her from reviewing her Parsha notes; she drank a bottle of water from her room’s ‘refreshment bar’ which unbeknown to her […]

Navigating the Ins and Outs of Renting an Airbnb (Including Guidelines for Shabbos and Pesach)

By: Rabbi Zvi Goldberg

Winter 2024

Who would have imagined, just a few years ago, that you could go on vacation and rent a stranger’s private home? But that is exactly what people now do every day, with the rise of Airbnb and similar short-term rental platforms that list millions of units in over 100,000 cities.[1]

A Torah-observant individual who enters into such an arrangement will encounter numerous halachic challenges when signing up as an Airbnb “guest.” This includes properties listed as “kosher” – even ones in Israel – since an owner usually cannot vouch for every renter who has used the kitchen, nor for each renter’s kashrus standards, which can vary widely. Likewise, one who owns and is the “host” of an Airbnb property will have to address his own set of halachic concerns. Let’s analyze some of the more common ones.

Kashrus Concerns During the Year (Excluding Pesach)

The primary area of concern for […]

Delivery and Ride Apps – Halachically App-roved?

By: Rabbi Zvi Goldberg

Updated November 2023

With the advent of the latest apps, a whole new world of halachic scenarios has arisen.[1] These include shailos about using food delivery services, working for a food delivery or ride app, and even calling and using a ride service. These various situations will be addressed here.[2]

Ordering from Meal Delivery Apps

Meal delivery apps like Uber Eats,
Grubhub, DoorDash and Postmates have seen tremendous growth over the last few
years. For our discussion, we will use Uber Eats as our example, but the concerns
raised apply to the comparable apps.

A customer orders from a restaurant that
has contracted with Uber Eats. When it is ready, an Uber Eats driver picks it
up from the restaurant and delivers it to the customer. Here are some points to
consider when ordering from a kosher restaurant:

Is the food properly sealed?

Delivered food must be properly sealed.[3] Many restaurants do not seal take-out food, unless the […]

A Traveler’s Guide to Tefilas Haderech

By: Rabbi Dovid Heber

Summer 2021

During the past year and a half, STAR-K mashgichim continued to conduct inspections in the United States and abroad in a manner deemed safe for them and factory personnel. STAR-K is very thankful for their tremendous mesiras nefesh to ensure that our certified products maintained the highest level of kashrus, even in the midst of a worldwide pandemic. Still, many consumers who frequently travel stayed home. With great siyata d’Shmaya, an effective vaccine was developed that has allowed us to resume our busy travel schedules and to once again recite Tefilas Haderech on a regular basis. Let us examine the halachos of this beautiful tefilla.[1]

The Tefilla

Tefilas Haderech is based on the Gemara in Brachos (29b-30a), with some minor variations, depending upon one’s nusach. The Gemara says it is recited in loshon rabim (plural; e.g., shetolicheinu, etc.).[2] When returning the same the day, the words v’sachzireinu l’shalom […]

Erev Shabbos GridLock: A Halachic Guide for the Delayed Friday Afternoon Traveler

By: Rabbi Dovid Heber

Published Winter 2013

A Halachic Guide for the Delayed Friday Afternoon Traveler

Every few months, the phone rings on Erev Shabbos with a similar shayla: “We are not sure if we will reach our destination in time for Shabbos. What should we do?” If the call comes from people who are stuck in traffic, my response has been, “Are you calling to find out the halachos, or to hear the best alternate routes to reach your destination?”