NYC kosher ice cream chain featured in ‘Jewish Matchmaking’ hit by listeria outbreak

New York Jewish Week via JTA — A kosher ice cream chain in Brooklyn is voluntarily recalling all of its ice cream and pareve frozen desserts after it was linked to a recent listeria outbreak from another kosher ice cream manufacturer.

The recall was announced by the Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday and lists more than 90 frozen treats sold by the Ice Cream House, a chain of kosher dairy eateries in Brooklyn that was recently featured in an episode of the Netflix reality show “Jewish Matchmaking.” The chain has salads, sandwiches and pizza on its menu, in addition to frozen desserts.

ADVERTISEMENT
Ice Cream House said in an automated voicemail message that it has closed its Borough Park location for maintenance until further notice. The chain’s other two locations — in Williamsburg and Flatbush, which, like Borough Park, have large Orthodox populations — remain open, according to the automated message. Ice Cream House did not respond to requests for comments.

The recall also applies to Ice Cream House frozen products sold in grocery stores.According to the FDA, the Ice Cream House recall is related to a listeria outbreak in a line of ice cream cups called Soft Serve on the Go, made by Klein’s Real Kosher, which were separately recalled earlier this month. The FDA has matched listeria found in those products to a food-borne illness that hospitalized two people in New York and Pennsylvania.

The FDA did not elaborate on how the recalls of Ice Cream House products and Soft Serve on the Go are linked. Klein’s Real Kosher, the Brooklyn-based frozen food company that produces Soft Serve on the Go, said on its website that the cups “are manufactured at their own dedicated facility” and that their recall earlier this month did not affect any other products.The relationship between Ice Cream House and Klein’s is likewise unclear. However, the two companies appear to be connected: One option on Klein’s main phone menu directs callers to Ice Cream House’s headquarters.