Moses is a go-getting expat Israeli who has been in Los Angeles for 13 years, and used to run a frozen yoghurt place in the Pico/Robertson neighborhood called Berri Good. Aryeh Powers is a soft-spoken former public relations agent who moved to Los Angeles from Philadelphia just over a year ago.

Serendipity brought the two young men together, where they came up with the idea for mykosherla. Says Powers, “I recognized that there wasn’t an online presence for our community for kosher shopping, but there’s tons of great kosher restaurants here so it simply made sense to start an online community, a one-stop shop where people can rate restaurants, write blogs, and include comments about their experiences.”

Launched on December 15, 2009, to date, My Kosher LA has had over 2,000 hits on its Web site, and the duo has already managed to reach out to many establishments that now offer discount coupons to their restaurants on the site. As Internet gurus, they’ve also taken maximum advantage of the benefits of Facebook, Flickr and Twitter.

“There are a lot of Jews who think there isn’t a good kosher selection out there,” says Moses. “So we want to show all Jews – not just the religious ones that keep kosher – that you can actually get a great kosher meal and there are so many choices these days, from Sushi and Persian to Chinese and French food.”

Indeed, the depth and breadth of the site’s coverage is quite extensive. Restaurants are divided into both geographical areas and different cuisines with links to each establishment’s Web site. Visitors can rate their dining experiences out of five stars and leave comments as well. However, My Kosher LA isn’t doesn’t just cover restaurants. You can seek out kosher caterers and grocery stores, peruse the FAQ, which provides a comprehensive overview of just what kosher is, what it means and why it’s good for you, as well as a list of the different Kashrut certifications in the area. There’s also an ongoing blog where the guys traverse the city’s streets looking for great meals and deals and writing about their experiences. It’s here that you can read about some of the hidden gems the duo have discovered from the schnitzel on pretzel challah at Got Kosher in the Pico/Robertson neighborhood, to the discovery of Jilli’s tea biscuits (courtesy of an event in Laguna Hills).

Says Moses, “The idea is to provide not just information on kosher establishments but for people to be able to share their experiences, by sending us their comments and ratings and taking part in our polls.” That way, he argues, it not only provides a great service for the community, but also provides healthy competition between the kosher establishments, forcing them to work harder to make their customers happy.

To that end, both Moses and Powers head out and write reviews of restaurants. They don’t let establishments know who they are, and if they enjoy a meal they’ll write it up on their site and then approach the establishment and ask if they want to place coupons on My Kosher LA, which they can do for free.

However, while the site is first and foremost a labor of love, the duo make no bones about the fact that they’d love to have sponsors and that they not only have the skills to build a paid web page for advertisers, they also have the skills to provide a video link as well to establishments.

In the meantime, they’re happy to expand the horizons of both Jewish and non-Jewish patrons to the amazing variety of excellent kosher food in Los Angeles. “We also hope to expand the site to other major cities eventually, including New York, Miami, Chicago, even Cleveland,” says Powers. Los Angeles, though, is the test city, and Moses says it’s the right place to be.

“We’re in Hollywood,” he says. “And many Jewish things – both Kabbalah and being kosher are kind of cool. There are lots of big name celebrities out there who want to find good kosher places to eat.” Why? “Because there’s something about the purity of kosher food that is appealing to celebrities and the health conscious. A place like Shiloh’s is popular even with non-Jews because it’s an excellent restaurant, with great steaks.”

That’s why, he says, the site isn’t aimed solely at Jewish people. “We also want to promote kosher food in general, and the benefits of keeping kosher.”

So, without showing any particular bias, do Moses and Powell have a favorite kosher LA establishment?

“That’s a really hard question,” says Moses. “I like a lot of different restaurants, but I really like the Delice Bistro.” As for Powell, he refuses to commit, but eventually admits he has a weakness for excellent kosher spinach pizza.

For more information, visit www.mykosherla.com