Sharon Lebewohl is a restaurateur,

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

, food consultant, cookbook author, and a guest instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education and New York's Jewish community Center. She is daughter of Abe Lebewohl, the restaurant entrepreneur and founder of the

Second Avenue Deli The Second Avenue Deli (also known as 2nd Ave Deli) is a certified-kosher Jewish delicatessen in Manhattan, New York City. It was located in the East Village until December 2007, when it relocated to 162 East 33rd Street (between Lexington Av ...

in New York City.

Biography

Born in the late 1950s to a

Jewish American American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of American Jews identify as Ashkenazi, 3% id ...

family, Lebewohl attended the

East Side Hebrew Institute The East Side Hebrew Institute was a traditional Jewish day school, in the East Village/ Alphabet City area of Manhattan, New York City. It was "once one of the major institutions of the Jewish East Side". History The East Side Hebrew Institute ...

on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. Lebewohl grew up at the

and learned cooking from her father, Abe Lebewohl. The restaurant was founded by her father and Sharon Lebewohl and her uncle, Jack, took over in 1996 after Abe's death. At the same time, Lebewohl attended college and educated and trained as a

registered nurse A registered nurse (RN) is a healthcare professional who has graduated or successfully passed a nursing program from a recognized nursing school and met the requirements outlined by a country, state, province or similar government-authorized ...

. Lebewohl is a mother of three and has several grandchildren.

Career

A 2001 graduate of the

French Culinary Institute The International Culinary Center (originally known as the French Culinary Institute) was a private for-profit culinary school from 1984 to 2020 headquartered in New York City, New York. The facilities included professional kitchens for hands- ...

, Lebewohl is a culinary educator and lecturer around the U.S., and appears frequently on

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

. For ten years, following the murder of her father, Lebewohl managed the 2nd Ave Deli along with her father's brother, Jack Lebewohl. Lebewohl co-authored ''The 2nd Ave Deli Cookbook'', written as tribute to her father's memory. Mark Rotella of ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' called ''The 2nd Ave Deli Cookbook'' "a cookbook that will bring a tear to readers' eyes", the ''

Lincoln Journal Star The ''Lincoln Journal Star'' is an American daily newspaper that serves Lincoln, Nebraska, the state capital and home of the University of Nebraska. It is the most widely read newspaper in Lincoln and has the second-largest circulation in ...

'' said the book "drips with schmaltz and nostalgia", and Jan Norris of the ''

Palm Beach Post ''The Palm Beach Post'' is an American daily newspaper serving Palm Beach County in South Florida, and parts of the Treasure Coast. On March 18, 2018, in a deal worth US$42.35 million, ''The Palm Beach Post'' and '' The Palm Beach Daily News' ...

'' called it "a cookbook for all." Writing for ''

The Florida Times-Union ''The Florida Times-Union'' is a daily newspaper in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Widely known as the oldest newspaper in the state, it began publication as the ''Florida Union'' in 1864. Its current incarnation started in 1883, when t ...

'', Dan McDonald observed that the "stories and recipes give the book a real flavor of the people and traditions of the city's East Village" and summarized ''The 2nd Ave Deli Cookbook'' as "a wonderful resource for the non-Jew and non-New York City dweller." The book also includes anecdotes from patrons of the restaurant. In 2007, Lebewohl produced the DVD ''A Sabbath Meal'', cooking along with actor

Mike Burstyn Michael Burstein (; born July 1, 1945) is an Israeli-American actor known onstage as Mike Burstyn. He was born in New York City to the late Yiddish-language actors, Pesach Burstein and Lillian Lux. His first cousin was Borsch Belt comedian, ...

Publications

*(Co-author, with Rena Bulkin) ''The 2nd Ave Deli Cookbook: Recipes and Memories from Abe Lebewohl's Legendary Kitchen'' (New York: Villard, 1999) *"A Sabbath Meal": In the Kitchen with Sharon Lebewohl and Mike Burstyn, 2007 (DVD).

References

External links

The official website of Sharon Lebewohl, food consultant, chef and author
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lebewohl, Sharon Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American women writers American cookbook writers American women chefs American women non-fiction writers East Side Hebrew Institute alumni International Culinary Center alumni Jewish American non-fiction writers Jewish women writers