Registry
Does Cafe Landwer support Israel?
Yes — Cafe Landwer has documented support for Israel on record. Every claim below links to its source.
Filed under: Coffee chains & brands · Fast food & restaurant chains · Companies that support Israel
Background
Cafe Landwer traces its brand to a Jewish family roastery founded in Berlin in 1919 that fled Nazi persecution to Tel Aviv in 1933 and became Israel's first coffee roastery. After October 7, 2023, its Canadian branches became protest targets: on October 21, 2023, the group Toronto4Palestine demonstrated outside a Toronto location, calling it a 'Zionist Cafe' and urging a boycott, which Canadian politicians condemned as targeting a Jewish business. Canadian outlet The Maple argued the boycott case rests on the chain's Israeli corporate ties rather than its Jewishness, noting CEO and co-founder Nir Caspi is a veteran of Israel's Shayetet naval commando unit and that the parent company appeared as a 'Cooperating Organization' of the Herzliya national-security conference in the late 2000s. No records were found of corporate donations by Cafe Landwer to the Israeli military or war effort; the North American cafes are franchises of the Israeli brand.
Newsweek The Maple JewishBoston
Timeline of documented support
Documented support
| Type | Date | Amount | Recipient | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operations in Israel | 2004 | — | State of Israel (taxes, employment, heritage consumer brand) Israeli cafe-restaurant chain built on the country's oldest coffee brand: Moshe Landwer founded the roastery in Berlin in 1919, fled Nazi Germany in 1933 and reopened it on Allenby Street in Tel Aviv as the first coffee roasting company in the country (moved to Holon in 1964). The Federman family's Federman & Sons (Holdings) Ltd. acquired Landwer Coffee from the founder's son in the early 1980s and in 2004 launched the Cafe Landwer chain, co-founded and led by CEO Nir Caspi, which grew to roughly 60-80 franchise locations across Israel. | |
| Operations in Israel | 2017 | — | Israeli brand expansion abroad International expansion of the Israeli chain: first North American location opened in Toronto in 2017, followed by Boston (Audubon Circle) in 2018. By the mid-2020s the North American network, run as franchises of the Israeli brand, had grown to about eight locations in the Toronto area and three in Boston, plus Los Angeles, South Florida, Las Vegas and New York City — extending the revenue base of the Federman-owned Israeli parent. |
Frequently asked questions
Did Cafe Landwer donate money to Israel or Israeli causes?
We have no records of cash donations, but Cafe Landwer has documented support of other kinds (Operations in Israel). See the records on this page.
Where does this information come from?
Every record on this page links to its source — news reports, official company statements, tax filings, or government records. 8 distinct sources are cited for Cafe Landwer. Our methodology page explains the full verification process.
Sources & citations
Record last updated: 2026-07-28
- Wikipedia — Landwer Coffee en.wikipedia.org
- Barista Magazine baristamagazine.com
- Newsweek newsweek.com
- Daily Hive Toronto dailyhive.com
- The Nosher (My Jewish Learning) myjewishlearning.com
- Cafe Landwer — About (official) landwercafe.com
- The Maple readthemaple.com
- JewishBoston jewishboston.com