Rav Hirsch would eat many delicacies in honor of Shabbos, enjoying these foods in kedusha and tahara. While he was still serving as the Gabbai of Rav Mendele, he once spent Shabbos with Rav Uri of Strelisk. Rav Hersh could see that Rav Uri ate very little and he asked him why he wasn’t eating more in honor of Shabbos.
Rav Uri answered that he couldn’t eat more than this, so he was exempt.
Rav Hirsch told him, “My Rebbe, Rav Mendel of Rimanov, also cannot eat very much. But he davened to be able to eat on Shabbos. Why don’t you do this as well?”
The Strelisker chasidim were upset that their Rebbe was spoken to in this manner by someone who seemed to them to be a regular person, but Rav Uri recognized that he was a great man and replied, “If I had the type of attendant that Rav Mendele has, I also would be able to daven all week to be able to eat on Shabbos.”
