It only took 5,776 years for matzo to become cool again.
Brooklyn’s The Matzo Project is the latest bespoke Jewish-themed food to hit the city.
Ashley Albert, Brooklynite and co-owner of The Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club, and her childhood camp friend Kevin Rodriguez have started a “ragtag Matzoventure armed with a good idea and little else,” Albert said.
The Matzo Project, which has created an artisanal matzo, is recognizable by its colorful boxes (this isn’t your bubbe’s matzo), featuring a caricature of a Jewish grandmother, and it has achieved Internet fame long before Passover.
“Based on the response we’ve gotten before officially telling anybody about it, it’s clear that we’re gonna have to scale up really quickly,” said Albert.
After developing their recipes, Albert and Rodriguez have been working in very small batches to create their Salted Matzo and decided to release the product to only four local stores — Greene Grape, Shelsky’s, Stinky Chelsea and Peck’s — on April 15.
These stores also received deliveries of three flavors of Chocolate Matzo Buttercrunch on Wednesday, though we can’t verify if any are still available.
“When they’re gone, they’re gone,” Albert warned.
It looks like the next rainbow bagel is flat and colorless.
The Matzo Project’s website features an upcoming online store that will purvey salted, everything and cinnamon-sugar matzo.
In June, The Matzo Project plans to present at the annual Fancy Food Show and, come fall, have products including a Matzo Ball Soup Kit, Matzo Chips and Matzo crumbs in stores.
