Rockland County, NY – A restaurant/café located just north of Monsey has come up with an innovative promotion for its patrons: spend ten minutes learning while dining, and receive a ten percent discount on your order.
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The idea is the brainchild of twenty year old Yochai Shelli, whose father owns Shelli’s Too, located on the outskirts of Monsey in the village of Wesley Hills. Shelli said that the idea came to him while learning in Ohr Somayach’s Derech program in Jerusalem last year and that program, which he implemented the several months ago has so far proven to be very successful.
“We have whole families coming in, sitting at a table and learning together for ten minutes,” Shelli told VIN News. “I have seen people learning from various seforim, saying Tehillim and mothers learning hilchos lashon hara with their kids.”
Shelli’s Too offers an assortment of seforim to its patrons, who are free to bring their own texts to the eatery. Shelli said that Nefesh Shimshon has proven to be a very popular choice among patrons and that several diners have told him that they have continued the practice of learning at mealtime in their homes as well.
Shelli hopes that other eateries, both in Monsey and elsewhere, will follow his example and institute similar programs.
What an innovative idea. Now that is thinking outside of the box!
beutifull, now what if the food is too good and you cant concentrate? what about this shayle
I was told there is no zchus for being paid to learn…getting a discount off your lunch tab would seem like “payment”….learning thats not l’shma is of questionable value unless it brings someone who might not otherwise learn closer to a torahdike lifestyle.
awsome idea. kol hakavod.
Very cool!!!
Oh wow! What a beautiful thing to do, hopefully stores in boro park will also start doing it
This may be marketing “shtick”, but the fact that people are learning cannot be a bad thing. Ashrei chelko that Yochai picked this, instead of something else. Hatzlacha!
“While dining?” Okay, haven’t seen it. Maybe the seforim get protective book and page covers. 10 minutes of learning while waiting to be served seems like a better bet, as respect for the holy books.
I am all for it,.
However, heres my deal. I am willing to come and learn for the required time, and then pay the full price for the food.
Hows that?
Alteh Bucher !
wow , in these days everybody is learning all type of places elevators, restaurants, except in Shull is where nobody learns…….
do u get 20% off for learning 20 minutes?
The free publicity he is getting from this gesture is worth more than the 10% discount.
This generation has enough learning, how about focusing on what matters, like good middos?
a few deep questions:
Is there a masgiach? or Sohel-Umeisivh? if someone learns only 5 minues he gets 5% off? if someone is cheating a minute or 2 its Torah-Theft? or Gzelas-Daas? or just Theft?
to #20 your comment is ridiculous. The idea of yissachar-zevulun partnerships goes back to the chumash. It doesn’t mean the business partner can sin what it does mean is their commerce supports the learning of the other brother. Kemuvan they are frum in every other way just not learning all day long.
If you as a customer are looking for fast table turnover so you don’t have to wait long, this is a horrible idea – people will prolong their meals by 10 minutes. The way I see this working is to learn only if you are waiting for a table or waiting for your food. Otherwise, this causes other people to wait longer for a table and those waiting people may seek sustenance elsewhere.
as the owner of Sheli’s Too and mother of Yochai, I can only say that anyone who doubts this is doing too many calculations about what is simply an effort of a young man trying to pass around some of the feelings he’s had while learning Torah. I honor his idea.