About the Program
Building Community One Table at a Time
Taste & Meet is an intercultural hospitality initiative by Peace Islands Institute New York. We bring together people of different faiths and backgrounds by inviting them into the most intimate and welcoming space there is — each other's homes — to share sacred meals around the holidays that matter most to them.
A Muslim family hosts neighbors for Iftar during Ramadan. A Jewish family opens their Shabbat table. A Christian household welcomes friends of other faiths to Christmas dinner. These are not just meals — they are moments of genuine human encounter, built on hospitality, curiosity, and respect.
We believe the dinner table is one of the most powerful places for peacebuilding. When you break bread in someone's home, you stop being a stranger. Taste & Meet creates those moments, one sacred meal at a time.
How It Works
The Dinner Experience
Open Your Home
Host a dinner around your own sacred occasion — Ramadan Iftar, Shabbat, Christmas, Eid, Easter, Diwali, or any holiday meaningful to you. We help you find guests.
Intimate Gatherings
Dinners are kept small — typically 6–10 people — so every guest has a real seat at the table and space for genuine conversation.
Sacred Hospitality
Your home, your traditions, your food. Guests come with open hearts and open minds. Together you share not just a meal, but a glimpse into each other's world.
Past Events
Around the Table
Ramadan Iftar at a Jewish Family's Home
A Muslim family was hosted by their Jewish neighbors for Iftar — the evening opened with blessings in Hebrew and Arabic, and ended with dessert recipes exchanged across the table.
Christmas Dinner with Muslim Guests
A Christian family in Brooklyn opened their home for a Christmas dinner, welcoming Muslim and Jewish neighbors. Stories of faith, family traditions, and the meaning of the holiday filled the evening.
Shabbat Dinner in the Upper West Side
A Jewish family hosted Muslim and Christian friends for a Friday night Shabbat dinner — candles lit, blessings shared, and a table full of warmth and curiosity.
Ramadan Iftar in a Church Rectory
A Catholic priest opened his home to Muslim community members for an Iftar dinner — a deeply moving evening of prayer, food, and mutual respect between neighbors.
Rotating Sacred Meals Series
Throughout the year, hosts from Muslim, Jewish, Christian, and other backgrounds open their homes around their own sacred days — Eid, Passover, Easter, Diwali, and more.