Maine Jewish Film Festival: We Met at Grossinger’s

Directed by Paula Eiselt. 104 minutes. Not Rated. In English.

We Met at Grossinger’s is an immersive journey through the Jewish Catskills—once known as the Borscht Belt—reviving the iconic resort that inspired Dirty Dancing and defined an era of Jewish American life.

Throughout decades of prejudice stifling the integration of Jewish immigrants in America, the Borscht Belt in the Catskills provided an oasis of belonging, and Grossinger’s Resort and Hotel was the crown jewel. The real-life inspiration for the setting of the 1987 classic film Dirty Dancing, Grossinger’s provided both a physical and mental getaway where Jews—and others from marginalized communities—needing a break from NYC could relax.

The resort’s growing reputation attracted a wide variety of comedians, athletes, and political figures, including Mel Brooks, Jerry Seinfeld, Jackie Robinson and Eleanor Roosevelt. Filmmaker Paula Eiselt resurrects this vanished world with an immersive warmth, providing a timely reminder of the historic richness of Jewish culture and its immeasurable contributions to American life.