Is a cup of coffee prepared by a Gentile kosher ?
Does a cup of coffee prepared by a Gentile underlie any Kashrut laws at all ?
When you go to Jerusalem's cafe AROMA branches at the Machane Yehudah Market or in Jaffa Road, you will notice that mainly Arabs work there and prepare the coffee coming out of the machine. Another problem is that the Arabs start their work earlier than the Jew in charge of the branch. The result is that it is the Arabs baking the croissants in the morning.
I spoke to a Chabad Rabbi and he said that the main question is:
Who is turning on the oven in order to bake and who is turning on the coffee machine ?
Maybe the Arabs ask a Jewish shop owner nearby to turn on the stove or the coffee machine ? This has to be clarified.
Otherwise a cup of coffee underlies the same Kashrut regulations as food because the coffee is undergoing a cooking process. Two ingredients (coffee and water) are merged into one liquid and this has to be caused by a Jew and not by a Gentile.
The AROMA branches in Jerusalem all have a Hechsher (kosher certificate) from the Rabbanut (Chief Rabbinate) and therefore it has to be clarified who is turning on the stove and the coffee machine, as I have already stated above. Nevertheless, I witnessed that at the Machane Yehudah branch, it is the Arab workers turning on the stove in order to bake. Despite the Mashgiach (kosher expert) being there and watching the Kashrut process.
Good to know there is a way of maintaining the traditions and believes no matter how.
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