STATEN ISLAND, NY – NEW SPRINGVILLE — It’s a family affair at Holy Schnitzel, a fast-food kosher restaurant in New Springville operated by a sister-and-brother team who grew up in the neighborhood.
The eatery features “American cuisine with a Mediterranean touch,” explained Sivan Benaltaba-Atia, the 24-year-old chef who co-owns the business with her
brother Ofeer Benaltaba, 31.

The 3-month-old restaurant, located at 438 Nome Ave., is just getting started, but it already offers an hearty array of items, from starters – such as sesame or Buffalo chicken fingers, falafel, soups and hot dogs – to a wide variety of salads, schnitzel (prepared breaded chicken-cutlets), sandwiches, paninis, burgers, wraps, and more.

Benaltaba said he and his sister were inspired to open the business because “we felt that Staten Island was missing a variety of kosher food. And we felt like the neighborhood needed something different, not just for those people who are keeping kosher.”

Ms. Benaltaba-Atia learned to cooked the old-fashioned way: In the family’s home kitchen. She furthered her food-related studies at the Art Institute of New York, Manhattan, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in restaurant management and a certificate in culinary arts