View source for Brachot on Food One Eats Before a Meal

If one eats before a meal in a number of cases one is exempt from making a [[Bracha Achrona]] because it is exempted by the [[Birkat HaMazon]] after the meal. In other cases, though, the foods are not exempted and require a [[Bracha Achrona]] as usual. Lastly, in the cases where there is a dispute as regards to the halacha, one should be strict to avoid that situation. See further for details.
==Exempting Other Foods==
# If someone is eating foods before a meal and the same food in the meal he should have in mind that the food before the meal is going to exempt the food during the meal. Consequently, the food before the meal is connected to the meal and birkat hamazon will cover it, therefore it doesn't need a bracha achrona.<ref>Mishna Brurah 176:2:1, Vezot Habracha (p. 80). Igrot Moshe 3:33 elaborates that the food before the meal exempts the food in the meal even though one actually intended to eat that food and enjoy it as long as one also had intent to exempt the food in the meal since it is then connected to the meal. See Talk page that in fact this ruling of the Mishna Brurah follows the Tosfot, Rosh, Baal Hameor, Shulchan Aruch, and Magen Avraham, but the Ramban holds that a bracha achrona should be made even if the food would have exempted foods in the meal.</ref>
==Whetting Your Appetite==
# If someone is eating food before a meal to whet his appetite many poskim hold that the birkat hamazon covers those foods even prior to the meal and as such one should not recite a bracha achrona.<ref>Mishna Brurah 176:2:3</ref> However, since this is a dispute one should avoid eating more than a kezayit before the meal.<ref>Shaar Hatziyun 176:9</ref> Examples of this include wine, liquor, or salty foods before a meal.<ref>Rosh (Pesachim 10:24), Mishna Brurah 176:2:3, Vezot Habracha (p. 81). (As a fun fact, the scientific research corresponds with the halacha about what makes your hungrier. See this [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/05/foods-that-make-you-hungry_n_6420332.html Huffingtonpost.com article] or [http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20835574,00.html#reasons-you-re-always-hungry-0 Health.com article]).</ref> 
# This exemption only works if one eats these foods immediately before the meal<ref>Mishna Brurah 174:24</ref>, such as within fifteen minutes.<ref>Vezot Habracha (p. 81)</ref>

==Drinks==
# If one drinks a drink before a meal one should not make a bracha achrona if one is going to drink during the meal. If one is not going to drink during the meal one should recite a bracha achrona.<ref>Mishna Brurah 174:25, Biur Halacha 174:6 s.v. vafilu, Kaf Hachaim on Orach Chaim 174:35:1, Vezot Habracha (p. 82). 
* The Magen Avraham 174:14 writes that according to the Machzor Vitri who requires a bracha rishona on drinks in a meal the drink before the meal is effectively coming to exempt the bracha of the drinks in the meal and as such doesn't require a bracha achrona. Additionally, according to the Baal Hameor for any drink that one continues to drink in the meal it would not require a bracha achrona since it is considered like one long drinking. Vezot Habracha proves from the Shaar Hatziyun 174:38 that the main reason to accept the Magen Avraham is the first reason and not the second one.
* Biur Halacha 174:6 clarifies that although the Taz, Olot Tamid, and Eliya Rabba posit that drinks before a meal are exempt in a bracha achrona since they whet one's appetite and are similar to wine, we don't follow their opinion. Since the Magen Avraham, Chida, Graz, Chayei Adam, and Magen Giborim all hold that regular drinks do not whet a person's appetite and require a bracha achrona before a meal we follow their opinion. Furthermore, the entire concept that food before a meal that whets one's appetite is exempt is based on the Rosh. Even though Shulchan Aruch O.C. 174:6 codified the opinion of the Rosh, in truth it is in disagreement with the Ramban, Ran, and Tosfot Pesachim 100b s.v. yadei as well as Grach Sanser rejects Shulchan Aruch and Rosh in favor of the these majority of rishonim.</ref> In the event that one forgot to recite boreh nefashot on the drinks before the meal he should still recite the boreh nefashot in the meal and even after birkat hamazon if he didn't remember until then.<ref>Biur Halacha 174:6 s.v. vafilu. See Dirshu who cites Tehilah Ldovid who asks how one could be sure that the shiur ikul didn't elapse.</ref> Sephardim hold that after Birkat Hamazon certainly one can't recite boreh nefashot since Birkat Hamazon after the fact covers the boreh nefashot.<ref>Kaf Hachaim on Orach Chaim 174:34:1</ref>
# However, wine and other liquors whet a person's appetite and don't require a bracha achrona before the meal.<Ref>Mishna Brurah 174:25, Biur Halacha 174:6 s.v. v'afilu. See Kaf Hachaim on Orach Chaim 174:48:1 who writes that if in a certain place it is customary to always have liquor before and during the meal, then it is considered like wine and its bracha achrona is exempted with birkat hamazon. In fact he cites the Arizal that this would be permitted even initially before the meal.</ref>

==Mezonot==
# According to Ashkenazim, if a person ate [[Pat Haba Bekisnin]] such as cake before the meal since birkat hamazon might cover the [[Pat Haba Bekisnin]] no bracha achrona is recited on the cake before the meal.<ref>Mishna Brurah 176:2. Biur Halacha explains that since every definition of Pat Haba Bekisnin is questionable whether it is bread and if it is bread then certainly birkat hamazon covers it, one should not recite a bracha achrona on it before the meal.</ref> Some Ashkenazim argue to make a bracha.<ref>Rav Moshe Feinstein in Igrot Moshe 3:33 writes that cakes nowadays are so filled with a majority of sugar, oil, and sweeteners in comparison to the flour that they are certainly [[Pat Haba Bekisnin]]. If so, there is no question that they aren't bread and birkat hamazon doesn't exempt them.
 Therefore, they deserve their own bracha before the meal.</ref> According to some Sephardim, a bracha achrona is made on [[Pat Haba Bekisnin]] before a meal. If one forgot until after hamotzei he shouldn't recite it anymore.<ref>Kaf HaChaim on Orach Chaim, 174:35:1, Vezot Habracha (p. 83) quoting Rav Mordechai Eliyahu</ref>
# On non-[[Pat Haba Bekisnin]] mezonot such as cooked mezonot one should recite a bracha achrona on that food before the meal unless one is going to eat that same food in the meal.<ref>Mishna Brurah 176:2</ref>

==Wine==
# If someone makes [[kiddush]] it certainly does not require a [[bracha achrona]] as it is exempted by the [[Birkat Hamazon]] either because of it is halachically linked to the meal or because it whets one's appetite.<ref>Mishna Brurah 272:35</ref> 
# If someone makes [[havdalah]] over wine before [[melava malka]] and is going to drink more wine during the meal he doesn't need to make a bracha achrona.<ref>Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 174:4</ref> If someone isn't going to drink more wine during the meal he should recite a bracha achrona.<reF>Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 299:8</ref>
# If a person drinks wine before a meal one should not make an [[Al Hagefen]] afterwards because [[Birkat Hamazon]] might exempt it. Since it is a dispute it is proper to avoid this situation by either by drinking a melo lugmav (cheekful) and not a [[reviyit]], having intent when saying [[Birkat HaMazon]] that it should cover the wine, or have intent that one's Hagefen upon the wine before the meal should exempt the wine that one drinks in the middle of the middle as long as one does have wine in middle of the meal.<Ref>Vezot HaBracha (chap 9, p. 84) writes that because drinking wine before a meal involves a dispute one shouldn't make a bracha achrona. However, he quotes three pieces of advise from the poskim to avoid this situation. The first is to drink less than a [[reviyit]] in order not to become obligated in a bracha achrona. The next is to have in mind when making the [[Birkat HaMazon]] that it should exempt the wine one drank before the meal. Lastly, he advises that if one will drink wine in the middle of the meal that one has intent that the hagefen before the meal will exempt the wine in the meal. </ref>
# Regarding [[Kiddush]], according to Ashkenazim it's preferable to drink a Melo Lugmav and not a [[Reviyit]].<ref>Beiur Halacha 174:6 s.v. Vechen, Vezot HaBracha (chap 8, p 84)</ref> According to Sephardim, it's preferable to drink a [[Reviyit]] and have intent that the [[Birkat HaMazon]] should exempt the wine.<ref>Or Letzion (vol 2, 20:22)</ref>

==Sources==
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[[Category:Brachot]]