Kosher deli in Vancouver, first established in 1910, looks for new owners to continue founder's legacy

For almost four decades, Efrem"Eppy"Rappaport has owned and operated what's been described asB.C.'s only kosher meatprocessing plant and deli.

But at 65, Rappaport says he is looking for another owner to take over OmnitskyKosher Deli on Oak Street in Vancouver as he preparesfor retirement.

"I've actually recently listed the business for sale and I'm looking for a potential suitor to take over at this point in time," he told Stephen Quinn,host of CBC's The Early Edition.

The deli owner sayshe first bought the business from William Omnitskyin Winnipegin 1983. Omnitsky's father, Louis, first opened the business in 1910.

Rappaportthen moved to Vancouver, where he first set up the deli on Cambie Street in 1997,thenrelocated it in 2014 to its currentlocation onOak Street.

"When I came out to Vancouver 27 years ago, there were little to no services available for people to ... keep a proper kosher home," he said.

Since then he's become known for his pastrami and corned beef sandwiches, with some customers like Michael Beher coming a great distance to dine at Omnitsky's.

"There isn't a good kosher deli within 1,200 miles of Seattle. The other closest place would be Los Angeles," said Beher, who lives in Seattle. He said he's been coming to the Vancouver deli since 1997.

WATCH |Omnitsky'scustomer Michael Beher explains why he travels from Seattleto Vancouver to eat at the kosherdeli:

Michael Beher travels from Seattle to eat at Vancouver's Omnitsky Kosher Deli

2 years ago

Duration 0:20

Beher says the next closest kosher deli to Seattle would be in Los Angeles.

Growing up with a rabbi father, Rappaport says there was a lot of emphasis on tradition andkeeping the rules of Judaism alive.

Sowhen the opportunity came to provide kosher meatfor the Jewish communityin Vancouver,he jumped at the chance.

Rappaport said customers had to order kosher meat from Toronto or Winnipeg before he opened thebusiness in Vancouver in 1997, and that closing the deli would be a huge loss to the community.

"I promised [my customers] that in one way or another, we are going to find a way for this to continue in a proper manner to service their needs for years in the future," he said.

Rabbi Philip Bregman, who says he knows Rappaport and his deli well, also said it plays an important rolefor Jewish people in Vancouver.

"We're not going to be eating in a restaurant unless they serve kosher meats, which are very, very few and far between," he said.

The word "kosher" comes from Hebrew and means "fit for use or fit for consumption," according to the certification agency Kashruth Council of Canada.

It relates to a body of laws found in both the Bible and Talmud and is relied upon by many different groups in addition to the Jewish community including vegetarians, people of other faiths, those with certain allergies or others who simply prefer the fact that the food has gone through a third-party certification process.

Passing on the tradition

Yvonne Smith, one of the first employees Rappaport hired in Vancouver, saysshe learned a lot from working with Rappaport, including how to make Jewish desserts like knish.

"I didn't know anything about kosher food ... so he brought a lady in from Winnipeg to show me and she taught me how to make knish. I learned a lot about the Jewish religion while working there," Smith told CBCNews.

Smith worked for Rappaport for 20 years at the processing plant before moving to 100 Mile House, B.C., but she says sheoften returnedto help especially during Passover.

"It was stressful especially around holiday times ...but everyone was really happy with everything [Rappaport]did for them," she said.

"He really worked hard for his community and a lot of people rely on him to have kosher food in the city."