Breakfast with Nadav Eyal!

Summary

Episode Overview

Podcast: Call Me Back – with Dan Senor
Episode: Breakfast with Nadav Eyal!
Date: November 12, 2025
Theme:
This episode spotlights a special fundraising initiative for the Jewish Food Society, a non-profit celebrating Jewish culinary traditions and their connection to Jewish history and identity. Dan Senor and co-host Ilan Benatar highlight this year’s unique auction prize: a breakfast with acclaimed Israeli journalist Nadav Eyal. Their lighthearted banter underscores both the cultural value of the cause and Eyal’s appeal to podcast listeners and supporters.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Jewish Food Society’s Mission (00:00–00:55)

• Dan Senor introduces the Jewish Food Society as an organization dear to him—connecting people to Jewish life and culture through the rich and diverse history of Jewish and Israeli cuisine.
  • “It uses Jewish food and Israeli food and the great history of Jewish culinary traditions from around the world as a platform to provide meaningful connections to Jewish life and Jewish culture and almost give you a tour through Jewish history, through the diversity of Jewish food.” — Dan Senor [00:18]

Auction Stories & Friendly Competition (00:55–01:20)

• Dan shares a brief story about last year’s fundraising auction item: “Lunch with Me.” He reflects on the enriching conversations with the winners, which covered everything from the podcast’s origins to developments in Israeli and Jewish diaspora affairs.
• This year’s featured auction item: “Breakfast with Nadav Eyal,” with Dan dramatically upping the stakes for how much money can be raised compared to last year.
  • Nadav responds with comedic anxiety, questioning whether he can match Dan’s fundraising success:
    • “Do you actually expect that I'm going to raise as much money as you did last year? Yeah. This really stresses me out, Dan. Dan is like the president of the Jews.” — Nadav Eyal [01:03]

Nadav Eyal’s Appeal & Dynamic (01:20–01:59)

• Dan highlights Nadav’s unique qualifications, emphasizing his stellar reputation and deep journalistic insight:
  • “You have one of the best sourced journalist notebooks of any Israeli Journalist. And I can easily think of a number of people who'd love to glance at that notebook over bagels and lox.” — Dan Senor [01:20]
• Playful banter continues as Nadav and Dan set targets and ambitions for this year’s fundraiser.
  • “You're inflating the expectations right now.” — Nadav Eyal [01:45]
  • "But let's beat Dan in that game. And it's all going to go for the Jewish Food Society and for the important work that they're doing." — Nadav Eyal [01:47]
• Both hosts reinforce the importance and fun of participating in the auction, with Dan personally vouching for the experience:
  • “I spend a lot of time with Nadav. He's a delightful person... Not only will you raise a lot of money for the Jewish Food Society through this breakfast, I think you'll actually raise way more than I raised last year. I think you'll raise multiples of what I raised.” — Dan Senor [01:34]
  • “Whoever wins this bid will have a thoroughly enjoyable meal with Nadav. I guarantee you'll learn a ton. You know, you'll laugh, you'll cry. It's better than cats.” — Dan Senor [01:59]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Dan is like the president of the Jews. This entire thing is actually a ploy. I'm from Israel. I'm just a visitor.” — Nadav Eyal [01:04]
• “I guarantee you’ll learn a ton. You know, you’ll laugh, you’ll cry. It’s better than Cats.” — Dan Senor [01:59]
• “Let's beat Dan in that game. And it's all going to go for the Jewish Food Society and for the important work that they're doing. So I'm definitely in.” — Nadav Eyal [01:49]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:00–00:55 — Introduction to the Jewish Food Society and last year’s auction.
• 00:55–01:20 — Nadav Eyal is introduced as this year’s breakfast auction guest; playful stress about fundraising expectations.
• 01:20–01:47 — Dan vouches for Nadav’s journalistic credibility and charm.
• 01:47–01:59 — Friendly competition and commitment to raising funds for a worthy cause.

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Tone & Style

The episode is light, jovial, and warm, relying on genuine camaraderie between Dan and Nadav. Their humor, self-deprecation, and mutual admiration bring levity to the fundraising appeal, while reinforcing the serious cultural value of the Jewish Food Society’s work.

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Summary

This episode sets the stage for a playful fundraising campaign between Dan Senor and Nadav Eyal in support of the Jewish Food Society. Through witty exchanges, the hosts offer an inside look at their personalities, commitment to Jewish communal causes, and the value of connecting over shared meals. The focus remains squarely on encouraging listener engagement and support for the Society while providing a taste of the spirited conversation breakfast with Nadav Eyal is sure to provide.

Transcript

[A]

Hi, it's Dan. Last year, I participated in a fundraising auction for the Jewish Food Society. The Jewish Food Society is a terrific organization that is close to my heart and my taste buds. It uses Jewish food and Israeli food and the great history of Jewish culinary traditions from around the world as a platform to provide meaningful connections to Jewish life and Jewish culture and almost give you a tour through Jewish history, through the diversity of Jewish food. So last year, to raise funding for the Jewish Food Society, there was this auction. And one of the auction items was Lunch with Me. And I had a delightful, actually two lunches with winning bidders for the auction. And we discussed a whole range of issues at lunch. The origins of the Call Me Back podcast. We discussed current state of Israeli politics. We discussed some recent developments that were going on in the Diaspora.

[B]

And.

[A]

And this year, you can win an exclusive breakfast with our very own Nadav Eyel.

[B]

Hang on, hang on. Do you actually expect that I'm going to raise as much money as you did last year? Yeah. This really stresses me out, Dan. Dan is like the president of the Jews. This entire thing is actually a ploy. I'm from Israel.

[A]

Right.

[B]

I'm just a visitor.

[A]

Yeah. But Nadav, you have one of the best sourced journalist notebooks of any Israeli Journalist. Journalist. And I can easily think of a number of people who'd love to glance at that notebook over bagels and lox. And I just think it's a no brainer. Not only will you raise a lot of money for the Jewish Food Society through this breakfast, I think you'll actually raise way more than I raised last year. I think you'll raise multiples of what I raised.

[B]

So you're inflating the expectations right now.

[A]

Okay, we're up for a challenge here.

[B]

But let's beat Diane in that game. And it's all going to go for the Jewish Food Society and for the important work that they're doing. So I'm definitely in.

[A]

I just want to say, whoever wins this bid for this auction, in all seriousness, I spend a lot of time with Nadav. He's a delightful person. Much more delightful off camera. Like, not when we're recording a podcast than when he is when he's on. No, I'm joking. You're delightful on podcast too, but he's a wonderful guy to spend time with. So whoever wins this bid will have a thoroughly enjoyable meal with Nadav. I guarantee you'll learn a ton. You know, you'll laugh, you'll cry. It's better than cats. So. So bid now follow the link in the show notes to place your bid for breakfast with Nadav.