Caterer Deceives Frum Guests with False ORB Certification, Served Treif Food in Florida

A Florida caterer served non-kosher food at a private event, including to some frum attendees, while claiming he was certified by the Orthodox Rabbinical Board (ORB), witnesses reported.

The incident occurred at a members-only shooting range in Fort Lauderdale, prompting the ORB to issue a public alert against the caterer, Rachid Zitani.

Rabbi Schneur Cheruti, an ORB rabbinic coordinator, explained that suspicion arose when one guest questioned the caterer about kosher supervision.

“He asked him, ‘Where’s your mashgiach?'” Rabbi Cheruti told Belaaz. “[The mashgiach] is away for a while, the caterer told him. ‘This is under ORB? No mashgiach? Can’t be.’ the guest knew our policies; our mashgichim never leave the area where food is present.”

Rabbi Cheruti said Zitani had applied for ORB certification in May but did not receive it. “He asked if he could get kashrus certification… [he] applied, but… he didn’t get it,” he noted, adding that the ORB maintains strict rules and some businesses are unwilling to comply.

The event’s organizer, a non-Jewish party planner, was unfamiliar with kosher supervision and reportedly accepted Zitani’s claim at face value. “She asked him, ‘Are you kosher?’ He said, ‘Yes, I’m kosher,'” Rabbi Cheruti said.

A frum guest also contacted Zitani directly to verify certification. “He asked him, ‘Which hechsher do you have?’ He said, ‘I’m under ORB,'” the Rabbi stated.

When confronted, Zitani offered a different explanation. “The guy, this chef, said to me… ‘I never said I’m under ORB. I said that I’m kosher style,'” Rabbi Cheruti recounted. “But,” he added, “a few people also in the event said that he told them that he is under [ORB].”

Rather than using a certified kosher kitchen, Zitani allegedly prepared the food in the club’s non-kosher kitchen.

“He came himself to a kitchen, to a treif kitchen in the club, and cooked there and did everything there… it was really treif food.”

The ORB issued a public warning to prevent further incidents. “What’s important for this, for the to’eles for the tzibbur, is that we want everybody to know about it right away,” Rabbi Cheruti said. “Not only not to book him, but also to learn… people need to learn to check the certificate every time.”

He encouraged consumers to verify a caterer’s kosher certification online. “You can go online in a second… you can click ‘View Kosher Certificate.’… Cholov Yisroel, Pas Yisroel… Everything is written on the certificate.”

The alert has already had an impact, Rabbi Cheruti said. “There was another event he was supposed to book with, and people canceled it.”

The rabbi also stressed the confusion caused by vague labels like “kosher style.” “‘Kosher style’  is a huge problem,” he said. “Many people, they have no idea. They grow up traditional, not being very careful about kashrus; they see ‘kosher’ on the door and they think it actually is.”