By Jan Téllez Asensio
New York, US (EFE).- GingerBread Lane, recognized as the world’s largest gingerbread village, has returned to New York this Christmas with more than 700 handcrafted cookie houses and storefronts, offering a sweet, miniature tribute to the city’s landmarks, diversity, and holiday spirit.
The annual exhibition features a detailed edible landscape inspired by New York City, including yellow taxis, a stretch of Fifth Avenue, Macy’s department store on 34th Street, subway entrances, and even a halal restaurant, all recreated in gingerbread, icing, and candy.
Hundreds of gingerbread buildings are on display amid sugary aromas and crowds of families and children, as the installation once again draws holiday visitors to Manhattan.
A sugary tribute to New York
This year’s GingerBread Lane pays homage to the city’s most iconic sights and cultural symbols.
Among the edible details are donut shops, famous nutcrackers, the city’s most filmed avenue, and classic yellow cabs.
The exhibit also reflects New York’s cultural and religious diversity.
Visitors can spot a halal restaurant honoring the city’s Muslim community, alongside a matzo ball shop and a dreidel, nodding to New York’s large Jewish population, one of the biggest outside Israel.
A Guinness World Record creator
GingerBread Lane was created by pastry chef Jon Lovitch, who has held the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest gingerbread village since 2013.
That year, his largest creation used about 300 kilograms of homemade gingerbread dough, another 300 kilograms of candy, and roughly 1,700 kilograms of icing.
“I’ve been making gingerbread villages for 32 years, and this is my tenth year doing it full time,” Lovitch told EFE. “I used to be an executive hotel chef in New York, but in 2016 I left that job to focus only on gingerbread villages because I love making people happy.”
A year-round labor of love
Lovitch works on the gingerbread villages throughout the year, storing finished pieces in the basement of his Queens apartment, where he has his main workshop. Even before the current display ends, he is already preparing for future editions.
“The most fun part is now, when people come, and they’re happy,” he said. “This weekend will be very busy, and that’s the best part, seeing smiles and people enjoying it.”
New York is one of five cities hosting GingerBread Lane this year, along with Boston, Chicago, Washington, DC, and Houston.
The New York installation covers about 25 square meters (82 square feet) and is on free public display in the lobby of the Starrett-Lehigh building in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood.
While visitors are not allowed to touch the display, they are invited to enjoy what Lovitch calls “a unique smell of Christmas.” EFE
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