According to Chabad, Rabbi Naftali and Rebbetzin Risha Deutsch founded Chabad Romania in 1999, shortly after their wedding.
When they arrived, Yeshua Tova held services once a week. Today, according to Chabad, there are services three times a day.
According to Rabbi Deutsch, a nursery and kindergarten opened in 2002, and a day school teaching in Romanian, Hebrew and English followed in 2007.
According to Rabbi Deutsch, Chabad sends pairs of rabbinic students to lead the Seder and the holidays, and serves 42 Jewish communities.
Rabbi Naftali Deutsch: the short answer
Rabbi Naftali Deutsch, born in Jerusalem, and Rebbetzin Risha Deutsch, from Kfar Chabad, are Chabad's emissaries in Romania. According to Chabad, they founded Chabad Romania in 1999, shortly after their wedding. Their base is the Yeshua Tova synagogue in central Bucharest, the oldest synagogue in the city.
When they arrived, services were held there once a week. Today, according to Chabad, there are services three times a day, a mehadrin kosher restaurant, a shop, Shabbat meals and activities for children, teenagers and adults.
In plain words: if you move to Bucharest and ask "where will we eat kosher, where will we pray, and who will help us in the first week?", you will almost always end up at the home the Deutsch couple built.
From Jerusalem and Kfar Chabad to Bucharest
In an interview with chabad.org marking 20 years of Chabad in Romania, Rabbi Deutsch said: "After we got married, we were sure that we would serve somewhere." They considered several options, from established communities to places with no infrastructure at all.
"When we heard about Romania, it felt right," he said. In his words, there were synagogues, Jews and a long-standing community that was functioning, but it was clear there was a lot to do.
In the same interview he shared a memory from 1992, seven years before the mission: he saw the Lubavitcher Rebbe walk Romania's then Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Moses Rosen, to the door at two in the morning. "I never imagined that I would one day serve in his country," he said.
The community they found, and the community that came after them
According to Rabbi Deutsch, in 1999 the Jewish community in Romania was almost entirely made up of local-born Jews: Holocaust survivors and their descendants. On that history, see the Jews of Romania and the link to Israel. A few years later things began to change. Jews from Israel, the United States, Britain and France came to Romania for study and business.
That changed Chabad's role. In his words, while the federation of Jewish communities focuses on Romanian-born Jews, Chabad's services and events are aimed at Jews from abroad as well.
As early as 2007, in an article on lubavitch.com, Rabbi Deutsch estimated that the number of Israelis in Romania had reached about 10,000. That was his own estimate at the time, not an official figure. The same article described about 200 people eating a Shabbat meal at Chabad every week, and a kindergarten of 40 children who spoke Hebrew, their mother tongue.
What they built, step by step
The synagogue. Shortly after they arrived, Rabbi Deutsch became the rabbi of Yeshua Tova, a synagogue about 200 years old. Services were added one after another, until there were daily services in a renovated sanctuary. When Spotmedia covered a rally in Bucharest in May 2021, it also introduced him as "Rabbi Naftali Deutsch of the Yeshua Tova synagogue".
A kindergarten and a school. According to Rabbi Deutsch, they opened a nursery and kindergarten in 2002, and a day school followed in 2007. In the chabad.org interview he spoke of 70 children, who learn Romanian, Hebrew and English. To be able to take babies from three months, "following the Israeli style", they worked with parliament to change the law. The money to set up the kindergarten, he said, was pledged by the philanthropist Sami Rohr in a phone call after midnight, in the spring of 2002.
Kosher food. Later a kosher shop and restaurant opened. "It's beautiful to know that people are now able to keep kosher with ease," he said. The restaurant, Bereshit, is on the second floor of Yeshua Tova, under Rabbi Deutsch's supervision.
When we heard about Romania, it felt right. (Rabbi Naftali Deutsch, chabad.org)
42 communities. According to Rabbi Deutsch, Chabad sends pairs of rabbinic students to lead the Passover Seder and the holidays in Jewish communities across Romania, and serves 42 communities.
Children, teenagers and babies. Rebbetzin Risha leads the CTeen youth programme and runs Baby Chai, a project that lends furniture and equipment for babies from birth to age three. According to the interview, it is the only project of its kind in Romania that they know of.
Students. Many Jewish students, most of them Israeli, study in Cluj. According to the interview, Rabbi Dovber and Fraidy Orgad, who had worked in Bucharest before, moved there to set up a Chabad house.
How they see life in Romania
Rabbi Deutsch speaks about the local community with respect. In the 2007 article he described respect as the "secret" of being accepted by Romania's long-established communities. In the chabad.org interview he added that village Jews were more traditional than city Jews, and that inspiration comes from the community itself: when a family decides to keep kosher, Chabad makes sure it has something to choose from.
He does not paint a rosy picture either. In his words, most Romanian Jews today are elderly, perhaps 80% of the community. That is why two of the three Chabad emissary couples focus on children and teenagers.
What a family moving from Israel can learn from their story
1. There is an address for the first week. A family arriving in Bucharest does not have to build everything alone. Write to Chabad before the flight and tell them what matters to you: kosher food, a minyan, a kindergarten.
2. Keeping kosher is possible, with planning. There is a restaurant, a shop and Shabbat catering. But Shabbat bookings close in advance, and according to the Chief Rabbinate's office there is currently no supervised bakery in Romania. The practical details are in the Jewish community in Romania and in our short guide to the Jewish community in Bucharest.
3. A Jewish school is an option too. Besides Laude-Reut, Chabad runs its own kindergarten and school. Compare the options before you choose a neighbourhood, in international education in Romania and kindergartens and schools in north Bucharest.
4. The community is small, so everyone counts. This is a community where a new family is noticed. If you come to a Shabbat meal or a holiday event, you quickly get to know most of the people.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the Chabad synagogue in Bucharest?
The Yeshua Tova synagogue, at Tache Ionescu 9 in the city centre. On Saturday morning, according to Chabad, there is a Chassidus class at 09:30 and Shacharit at 10:00.
Can I come to a Shabbat meal?
Yes, by registering and paying in advance on the Bereshit restaurant's website. Registration closes before Shabbat, so do not leave it until Friday.
Is the restaurant kosher?
According to Chabad, Bereshit is a mehadrin kosher restaurant under the supervision of Rabbi Naftali Deutsch, with Pat Yisrael and Chalav Yisrael.
Can I enrol my children in the Chabad kindergarten?
According to Chabad, there is a kindergarten and a school. We found no up-to-date publication on admission terms and fees for 2026–2027, so contact Chabad Romania directly.
The bottom line
The Deutsch couple arrived in 1999 to a community of survivors and of memory. Since then many Israelis have come, and they have found daily prayers, kosher food, a kindergarten and company for the holidays. Not every family needs all of these, but it is good to know they exist.
If you are considering a move and want to understand what Jewish life looks like from north Bucharest, book a 30-minute call with me. We will go through the distances, the community and what matters to you.
Moti Azulay, Compass Group Romania
Sources: chabad.org, What It's Like to Be a Rabbi in Romania (Menachem Posner) · lubavitch.com, Opportunity in Romania Lures Growing Numbers of Israelis, 5 January 2007 · Chabad Romania, About · Chabad Romania, information for visitors · Chabad Romania, Bereshit restaurant · Bereshit, About us · Bereshit, Shabbat meal registration · Spotmedia, 18 May 2021 · Wikipedia, Yeshua Tova Synagogue · Chief Rabbinate of Romania, kosher in Romania
Based on public reports and published interviews, correct as of 22 October 2026. Rabbi Naftali Deutsch was not interviewed for this article.
The complete guide: relocating to Romania
- Relocating to Romania: the complete guide
- Visas, residence and legal status in Romania
- The Jewish community in Romania
- International education in Romania
- Prominent Israelis in Romania
Prominent Israelis in Romania: all the stories
- Chef Joseph Hadad
- Tova Ben-Nun Cherbis, Laude-Reut
- Rabbi Naftali Deutsch, Chabad Romania (you are here)
- Eli Davidai, Pepsi Romania
- Ambassador Dr. Lior Ben Dor
- Ofri Arad, FCSB
- Nancy Brandes
Now you know more.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult local professionals before any transaction.
