[Avodah] Understanding an Unfriendly Minhag: Not Eating Out on Pesach

[Akiva Miller via Avodah]

I wrote:

> This is especially so in situations where the kashrus standards of the
> would-be host are at least as high as those of the would-be guest.

R' Yitzchok Levine asked:

> And how, pray tell, is one to determine how "the kashrus standards of
> the would-be host are at least as high as those of the would-be guest"?
>
> Is one to make an inspection of the host's kitchen and review all of
> the products he uses?  If so, is this not insulting to the host?

#1) In the article cited, much was made of an incident when Rava went to
visit Rav Nachman, who was Rava's rebbe, and was thus presumably at least
as strict as Rava. (See the article for more information, and for various
ways of understanding that gemara.)

#2) I, personally, am not very knowledgeable about the ins-and-outs of this
practice, such as who follows it, or to what extent they follow it. That's
whay I can't answer your question by pointing to people who won't even eat
in their parents' homes; I have no idea whether or not this practice really
goes that far. HOWEVER, I do presume that the author of the article is
familiar with these things, and near the beginning of the article, he
writes:

> perhaps the most intriguing of Pesach stringencies is the widespread
> minhag not to eat anyone else's food during the Pesach holiday, even
> if the other person keeps their chumros.

It seems from this that Rabbi Reiss *is* aware of people who avoid eating
other food, even when they do know that their standards have not been
otherwise lessened. There can be many ways of knowing this, without
"make[ing] an inspection of the host's kitchen and review[ing] all of the
products he uses ... insulting to the host", such as when they are close
family members, or friends, and/or the host actually invites the guest to
examine his products and practices.

Akiva Miller
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