NU FRIDAYS
Our Shabbat supper club.
Could hosting Shabbat be your next creative and spiritual flex? Our summer workshop series for Gen Z Jews is all about becoming a confident host. This year, from the Federation’s beautiful BAR Center in Venice Beach, we built friendships, reimagined rituals, learned with experts, and discovered how to make Shabbat our own.
Over four months, our supper club became more than just a series of Friday night dinners: a practice, a place for courage and connection, where strangers became friends and rituals found a home in our lives.
At our first session, the cohort gathered shimmering in bling and blue jeans, ready to take a chance on something new. We began by naming our fears: forgetting names, not knowing enough, not finding our place. We discovered quickly that we were not alone. Together in a moment of food and conversation, of laughter and dance, we caught a glimpse of what could grow when we say yes together.
In our second gathering, we turned to the art of hosting, guided by Jewtina y Co.’s Kimberly Dueñas. Exploring how vulnerability makes space for awe, how storytelling can transform a table, and how Shabbat rituals can be both deeply personal and joyfully shared, assigned seats became opportunities for connection, and we ended the night not only with full bellies but with a clearer sense of how we want others to feel in our homes: seen, welcomed, nourished.
In our third session we shifted to food, the heart of so many gatherings. With chef and author Natasha Feldman, we reimagined what it means to craft a dinner party, dreaming up menus for future Shabbats, swapping cookbooks, and daring ourselves to take risks in the kitchen.
In our last session, we stepped fully into Shabbat rituals with Rabbi Sofia Zway and Rav Brett Kopin. Dressed in white and reflecting on the simple practices that ground us, we offered each other blessings for the year ahead. What began as an experiment became its own ritual: opening circles, thoughtful check-ins, playful seating, shared meals, and a sense of belonging that deepened each month.
JOIN US IN 2026
Nu Fridays is just getting started. Reach out below and we’ll let you know when applications launch.
