When you think of Puerto Rico, words like ‘vibrant’ and ‘colorful’ likely come to mind. You might picture Caribbean beaches, cobblestone streets, and Hispanic influences. And you’d be right. Puerto Rico has all that in abundance.
What may come as a surprise, however, is the island’s Jewish heritage. My travel companion and I discovered this firsthand during our visit to La Isla Verde last December. Home to the largest Jewish community in the Caribbean, Puerto Rico boasts more than 3,000 Jewish residents and a choice of Orthodox, Conservative, and Reform synagogues.
As someone who grew up in a smaller community in North Dakota, where calling out takiyah would more likely be mistaken as tequila, I make it a point to seek out the Jewish presence in the places I visit. In Puerto Rico, I discovered an unexpected connection to Jewish history and community.
A Jewish Footprint on the Island
Puerto Rico’s Jewish roots run deeper than I initially realized. The island’s first Jewish residents were Crypto-Jews, or secret Jews, who arrived in the 1400s on Christopher Columbus’s second voyage. Forbidden from openly practicing their faith under the Spanish Inquisition, many sought refuge in Puerto Rico’s mountainous regions, where they continued their traditions in secret.
It wasn’t until the 1930s and 1940s that an openly Jewish community began to take shape, as refugees fleeing Nazi-occupied Europe sought safety on the island. Their arrival was followed by a wave of Cuban Jews escaping Fidel Castro’s regime in the 1950s, further shaping Puerto Rico’s Jewish identity.
Jewish influence continued to grow in the decades that followed, expanding beyond religious and commercial spaces into Puerto Rico’s agricultural industry. In the 1980s, a group of Israeli agronomists introduced advanced irrigation technology, helping transform the island’s farming landscape. They established Puerto Rico’s first commercial mango plantation, along with vegetable farms that still supply produce to markets as far away as Miami and Europe. Today, a small but dedicated group of Israelis continues this legacy, contributing to Puerto Rico’s agricultural development and economy.
Discovering Puerto Rico’s Modern Jewish Life
As soon as we retrieved our luggage and hopped in our Uber toward our Airbnb, we got our first taste of Puerto Rico’s driving culture, which closely resembles the organized chaos found on the roads in Israel. Think spontaneous lane changes without signals and impatient honking the moment a light turns green. On the plus side, Uber drivers here are impressively skilled, maneuvering through the frenzy without missing a beat.
As we zigzagged our way from the airport to the condo, signs of modern Jewish life began to emerge. Just steps from our high-rise stood the Chabad Jewish Center, a welcoming presence in the neighborhood. A short walk away was Pueblo, a supermarket chain founded in the 1950s by Jewish brothers Harold and George Toppel. Though we don’t keep kosher, we were intrigued to find OMRKT, a fully kosher, locally owned restaurant just ten minutes away, offering a unique fusion of Mediterranean and Asian flavors. And when it came time for our nightly ice cream ritual, Anita’s Gelato, a Tel Aviv-based creamery, gave us not one, but two locations to choose from.
But if there’s one thing I’ve learned from traveling, it’s that Jewish culture isn’t just found in synagogues or historic sites—it’s found at the table. And with Puerto Rico’s rich culinary traditions, there was no better way to deepen our understanding of the island than through its food.
Exploring Puerto Rico, One Bite at a Time
Two scoops of Tel Aviv-based Anita’s Gelato. One scoop Cookieman flavor, one scoop salted caramel. (Courtesy)
That’s why, when planning our trip, I focused on four key questions: Where, when, what, and why will we eat? Because if food is a gateway to understanding a culture, then I wanted to eat my way through Puerto Rico.
To find the answers, we chose Viator’s Authentic Flavors of San Juan food tour. Over the course of three hours, our small group was introduced to island staples—from bold Puerto Rican coffee to sweet plantains to the island’s legendary rum. Our guide wasn’t just knowledgeable about the flavors we tasted; they also wove in the city’s rich cultural history, adding depth to every bite.
As is often the case in Puerto Rico, our tour came with an unexpected guest: a torrential downpour. It lasted just long enough to soak us through but not long enough to stop us from continuing. To that I say, if we were given dessert but it continued to rain, Deyenu.
I came to Puerto Rico with four essential questions—where, when, what, and why will we eat?—and left with even more unexpected answers. Between bites of mofongo and scoops of Tel Aviv-inspired gelato, I discovered a Jewish presence that has been quietly thriving on this island for centuries. Who knew that a trip to the Caribbean would turn into a lesson in Jewish resilience, adaptation, and, of course, good food?
One thing’s for sure: whether it’s in a synagogue, a supermarket, or a mango farm, if you look for Jewish life in unexpected places, you’ll find it. And if you can enjoy some rum and plantains along the way, even better.
I lived in Ponce, PR for 3 months in 1971. Peace Corps had its Latin America training center there. There were 2 other Jewish PC trainees with me and we had to go to San Juan for high holiday services, which were being held in one of the swanky hotels near El Morro. Just about everyone was vacationing there, so I was unaware if there were any truly Puerto Rican Jews in the place. I remember the old TV show “Welcome back, Kotter” and one of the characters was a Puerto Rican Jew, Epstein. After my Peace Corps experience in Ecuador, I knew that this was a real possibility as I knew quite a few Ecuadorian Jews – Cohen, Coifman, Lieberman, and more . Ended up writing a book about Ecuadorian Jews: The Boy with Four Names. My best memory of Puerto Rico was the “fruits” of the local major employer: Don Q rum!