Image by Getty Images/Nikki Casey

Writer-at-Large Jane Eisner December 6, 2016

Jerusalem — Scoff if you like, but this is something I do. I’m a Jewish journalist. We care about our food.

At the end of my White House interview last year with President Obama, I asked him for his favorite flavor of bagel.

How could I not ask the same thing of the prime minister of Israel? I’d be called an anti-Semite.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

So at the end of a rather contentious session with Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday — more on that here — I had to ask him the same question.

He interrupted me before I even finished — not for the first time that evening — and said “sesame.” Then he quickly took it back. Motioning to his staff in the front row of an auditorium at the Israeli Foreign Ministry (Netanyahu is foreign minister, also), he asked for help in Hebrew to find the right word.

“Poppy seed!”

Bingo.

Despite their public differences, Netanyahu and Obama share an affinity for the round doughy staple covered with little hard black seeds.

You do agree on something, I pointed out.

“We signed a memo of understanding,” Netanyahu quipped, citing the unprecedented military aid agreement recently concluded by him and Obama. “You know, that’s a $38 billion bagel.”

I wasn’t allowed a follow-up question, so I wonder: Will the cost of that bagel change when Donald Trump is in the White House?

Contact Jane Eisner at [email protected] or on Twitter, @Jane_Eisner

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount