What is "mashgiach"

n. (cx Judaism English) Somebody who supervises the kashrut status of food in a restaurant. (from 20th c.)

A Mashgiach (, pl. משגיחים, mashgichim, lit. "Supervisor") is a Jew who supervises the kashrut status of a kosher establishment. A mashgiach may supervise any type of food service establishment, including slaughterhouses, food manufacturers, hotels, caterers, nursing homes, restaurants, butchers, groceries, or cooperatives. The mashgiach usually works as the on-site supervisor and inspector, representing a kosher certification agency or a local rabbi, who actually makes the policy decisions for what is or is not acceptably kosher. Sometimes the certifying rabbi ( Hebrew: רב המכשיר, rav hamachshir) acts as his own mashgiach; such is the case in many small communities.