How to Set the Perfect Rosh Hashanah Table

Every Jewish holiday and Shabbat meal starts with Kiddush - a special prayer over wine or grape juice that is recited in order to sanctify the special occasion. And Rosh Hashanah is no different, having its own Kiddush prayer to start the meal.

You'll need:

• A Kiddush cup, a special cup or glass for the prayer leader (usually the head of the household, but can also be an honored guest) who will recite the Kiddush prayer - choose your perfect style, the more beautiful the better!
• Wine glasses or individual Kiddush cups for the other guests - you may consider a special set or fountain with matching Kiddush cups to really tie the whole table together
• Wine or grape juice

The importance of the Kiddush ritual means that the main Kiddush cup gets a prominent role at the holiday table, and should be set next to the place setting of the person who will lead the prayer.

One of the most iconic Rosh Hashanah traditions is eating apples with honey at the start of the holiday dinner as a wish for a sweet new year.

Which means you'll want beautiful serving dishes for your apples and honey to pass around to your family and guests!

You can make the experience extra special with artisanal honey from Israel as well as a beautiful honey dish from one of Israel's top designers, sent to you straight from Jerusalem.

Many Jewish families have a tradition of eating other symbolic Rosh Hashanah foods as well, called simanim in Hebrew. These represent wishes for the new year in a similar vein to the apples and honey tradition. Some examples include dates or leeks as a wish to overcome our enemies, or pomegranate seeds to represent an abundance of blessings, goodness, and mitzvot (commandments or good deeds).

Some people even conduct a "Rosh Hashanah Seder" (similar to a Passover Seder but much shorter!) that involves reciting blessings over each of the symbolic foods.

If you will be serving any special simanim you'll want nice serving dishes for passing them around, or even a dedicated Rosh Hashanah Seder plate by an Israeli artist that combines them all into one beautiful display! A prominent serving plate can be the centerpiece of your holiday table, or you may want to have multipes throughout if you plan to have a large table with many guests.

You can choose a Rosh Hashanah Seder plate that has labeled spaces in Hebrew or both Hebrew and English for the most common symbolic foods, or an unlabeled one that gives you the freedom to choose your own foods and make your own family traditions.

Jewish tradition dictates that a holiday meal should have two loaves of bread, most commonly challah, and Rosh Hashanah is no different - though many Jewish families use special round loaves for the holiday to symbolize the head of the new year.

For serving your holiday challah, you'll need:

• A challah board or tray
• A challah cover to keep the bread covered until you're ready to recite the Hamotzi blessing and serve - this can be simple or a beautiful, decorative piece
• A knife to cut it (unless your tradition is to tear the bread); some families have a dedicated challah knife that is only used for this purpose
• Once cut, the Rosh Hashanah challah pieces are traditionally drizzled or dipped in honey for some extra new year sweetness - so make sure your honey dish has enough honey for both the apple and the challah portions of your meal

Check out our challah recipe roundup for some of our favorite recipes including for sweet round challah that's perfect for Rosh Hashanah, and explore beautiful challah serving essentials from Israel!

Since a traditional Rosh Hashanah meal features several special prayers and blessings, you'll want to make sure that the person leading them has a machzor or holiday prayer book!

Many families also use smaller, dedicated prayer booklets at meals called benchers in Yiddish or birkonim in Hebrew. These may also be bought in sets and passed out to guests so they can follow along during Kiddush and later participate in the grace after meals prayers (known as benching or birkat hamazon) at the conclusion the meal.

If you are serving a series of traditional Rosh Hashanah foods at the start of the meal, you may also want to pass out compact-sized blessing books or simple booklets for your guests to follow along with. And if you buy a Rosh Hashanah Seder plate from Israeli artists Dorit Judaica or Mickala Design, they'll come with a blessing booklet included.

Now that we've got all the ritual pieces for your Rosh Hashanah dinner, you'll of course need the place settings and the food for all your guests!

• Check out our Rosh Hashanah recipe roundup for menu inspiration
• Consider ordering some of your dishware and cutlery from Israel, to support Israeli artists while giving your holiday table a special Israeli flair
• Add a special holiday touch with a Rosh Hashanah-themed pomegranate- or apple-shaped candle, holiday trivets, fresh flowers, seasonal branches, or a display of fresh apples or pomegranates as decoration
• And don't forget a beautiful tablecloth or table runner to tie it all together!

Browse our store for all the Rosh Hashanah gifts and essentials you need, including beautiful dinner essentials and hostess gifts by Israeli artists.

Wishing you a wonderful and joyous Rosh Hashanah!