A Palestinian restaurant in New York hosted a free Shabbat dinner. Over 1,300 people showed up.

• Ayat, a Palestinian restaurant in NYC, faced threats and harassment amid the Israel-Hamas war.
• Owner Abdul Elenani hosted a Shabbat dinner to foster dialogue and thank those who stood by him.

At Ayat, a Palestinian restaurant in Brooklyn's Ditmas Park neighborhood, servers set out platters of creamy hummus, crunchy fattoush salad, spiced ouzi chicken, and mansaf, a lamb dish cooked in a tangy yogurt sauce. Fluffy pita was piled next to enormous loaves of challah bread, a traditional Jewish Shabbat dinner staple. Outside, a line stretched down the block and around the next corner.

Owner Abdul Elenani and his wife, Ayat Masoud, for whom the restaurant is named, put out the call on Instagram advertising a free community Shabbat dinner as "an opportunity to share stories, embrace diverse perspectives, and celebrate our shared humanity."

Three weeks later, on January 26, over 1,300 people showed up.

Community support amid online hate

Both Jewish and Palestinian restaurant owners have experienced vandalism, mass one-star reviews, and online harassment amid escalating political tensions related to the Israel-Hamas war.

Ayat, which has five branches across New York City, has also experienced backlash in recent weeks.

When its new Ditmas location opened in December, the restaurant featured the pro-Palestinian slogan, "From the river to the sea," on its seafood menu. Some Jewish civil-rights organizations, such as the Anti-Defamation League, consider the slogan antisemitic and say it calls for dismantling the state of Israel. In contrast, pro-Palestinian activists such as Yousef Munayyer maintain it is a peaceful call for Palestinian sovereignty.

As members of a local Facebook group began angrily posting about the restaurant, news outlets like The Daily Beast and The New York Post got wind of the controversy. Ayat started receiving bomb threats and hateful messages on social media. At the height of the vitriol, Elenani's wife and child required police escorts.

Elenani said that after community members rallied around him, he was inspired to host a Shabbat dinner to show his appreciation.

"I said, 'You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to do a public Shabbat dinner for everybody,' especially after a lot of the Jewish community reached out to me thanking me for what I do, standing with me, supporting me," he told Business Insider. "I felt like I had to give something back to my supporters."

The Shabbat dinner was not without backlash of its own, but Elenani, who is Muslim, didn't let it deter him.

"I get backlash from my own community saying, 'How can you do this? How can you do a Jewish Shabbat dinner?'" he said. "I'm like, listen, you cannot involve Judaism with what's happening back home."

"These are two different things," Elenani continued. "Jews are one thing, and then the Israeli government, that's political. So we're talking about politics over here, and we're not trying to get into politics. We're trying to get into just the essence of Judaism, the essence of Islam, and how when it comes together, it's really a beautiful thing."

'Food brings people together'

Elenani prepared most of the food for the Shabbat dinner in-house but ordered the challah from a local Jewish bakery and wraps from a kosher caterer for any Jewish community members who observe religious dietary laws.

The restaurant also added a large tent with tables and chairs for additional seating. He estimated the event cost between $30,000 and $40,000 but refused to accept any donations.

"I mean, people did try reaching out saying, 'Can we do a GoFundMe page?'" he said. "I'm like, 'For what? Are you guys crazy?' No, I'm just doing it from my own pocket and I want to do it from my own pocket."

Looking out at the crowd of people gathered to share Shabbat dinner, some waiting in line for hours and reaching Ayat's buffet stations after midnight, Masoud was thrilled.

"Food brings people together, and that's honestly what we stood for when we first opened our first location," she said. "Part of Palestinian culture is being hospitable, serving large portions of food and having everybody break bread together. This is the ideal way to do it."

A range of perspectives

Ayat's Shabbat dinner attracted people from various backgrounds and perspectives who may not normally have shared a meal together.

Paula Rackoff, a rheumatologist who has volunteered in Israel and the Palestinian territories with Physicians for Human Rights, told Business Insider she attended the Shabbat dinner in pursuit of open dialogue.

"I actually identify as a Zionist," she said, referring to the Jewish nationalist movement supporting Israel as a Jewish state. "I think Jews need a homeland, and I think this is the homeland for us. But I think neither of the Israelis nor Palestinians are going anywhere, so we really have to figure it out."

Myriam Marques, a nurse and activist involved with the grassroots protest group Shut It Down For Palestine, came to hand out pamphlets emblazoned with "We charge you with genocide!" for an upcoming protest in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

"This is just wonderful," she said. "It shows what we need to do, that we need to talk about peace, about life together."

Rabbi Ellen Lippmann, a board member of Jews for Racial and Economic Justice and member of Rabbis for Ceasefire, described the restaurant's event as "heart-opening."

"I heard about their difficulties, and that this offering of Shabbat dinner to our world was their way of responding to hatred that they had received just blew me away," she said. "I don't know how many people or organizations or businesses would have that kind of response to turn it around."

Elenani has always dreamed of opening a restaurant featuring separate kosher and halal kitchens with communal tables where everyone can sit together regardless of religious dietary practices. If Ayat's packed Shabbat dinner is any indication, people are hungry for such spaces now more than ever.