It’s Hanukkah! The Festival of Lights! Did you know there was also a big Jewish holiday in December? If you’re from New York, the answer is yes, because there are a lot of Jewish people here so we’ve all known about Hanukkah forever. Hell, they used to serve latkes for lunch in my public school back in the 1970s during Hanukkah and yes, I’m old, but also it was my favorite week of school lunch. Latkes are DELICIOUS.
And that brings me to the Hallmark Channel’s holiday rom-com Hanukkah on Rye. Unlike some past “Hanukkah” offerings in the yearly smorgasbord of Christmas holiday rom-coms, this flick is actually about Hanukkah. Also, it’s about latkes, which, again, are delicious. I’m going to have some tonight, made by my Jewish mother-in-law, and if you’re jealous, you are right to be.
Our two leads both know how important latkes are this time of year, because they are both the heirs apparent to famous Jewish delis that are known for their latkes. Molly stands to inherit Gilbert’s on the Lower East Side of Manhattan from her parents and her bubbe (grandma). It’s been there for 100 years, and it’s known for its latkes. That’s a stretch, because a Jewish deli on the Lower East Side would be known for a lot of things, not just latkes. This is a Hallmark Hanukkah movie, though, so we’re going with the most easily recognizable Hanukkah food.
Jacob is going to inherit Zimmer’s from his parents and his bubbe. That’s a Jewish deli in Los Angeles that has strayed from its traditional roots and serves things like poutine and fajitas in addition to latkes. Typical LA bullshit, if you ask me. I’d still eat there, though, because it’s hard to find good deli food in LA. When I lived in LA, I specifically went to Jewish delis at Hanukkah in search of–you guessed it–latkes.
Our movie begins when Jacob heads to New York to sign the lease on Zimmer’s new second location on the Lower East Side. Guess what? It’s on the same street as Gilberts! Guess what else? He moves into the same building as Molly!
Look, people, I told you at the start that this was a Hallmark rom-com. There are convenient plot points. That’s how these things work. The plot from here on out is a new take on The Shop Around the Corner and You’ve Got Mail. Molly and Jacob meet cute in real life while also being anonymously set up by their grandmas via an old school Jewish matchmaker. There are letters sent back and forth baring their souls while they also hang out in person and get to know one another.
In the background is Hanukkah. There’s a giant menorah outside where the local community gathers to sing the prayers every night, which is a nice touch. Molly, worried that business is waning, takes Jacob’s advice to modernize things and organizes cooking classes and song nights. The latter leads to some fun riffs on the fact that this is a holiday shockingly lacking in good songs, something everyone knows but somehow few people take action on. It also gives us Lisa Loeb, who hasn’t aged a day in 30 years, singing her song “Light!”
Of course, there are bumps in the road and eventually business threatens to get in the way of love. But this is a Hallmark movie. It’s not really a spoiler to tell you that love wins in the end.
The beautiful thing about Hanukkah on Rye is simply that it’s here on Hallmark at all. It’s not about Christmas but pretending to be about Hanukkah. It’s not about explaining a Jewish holiday–or Jewish people–to an uncomprehending world. It’s simply a movie about the longstanding traditions of New York Jews and how they anchor some families no matter where they live in the country. Is the anchor going to hold our new couple down and keep them from moving forward? Or is it just going to ground them while they learn to grow and change together? Either way, it’s nice to learn a bit about the history of the Lower East Side and one of the many groups that has inhabited this fertile slice of American immigrant history.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that there is a latke-tasting contest in this movie dubbed “The Battle of the Bubbies.” Pure Genius. Happy Hanukkah!
