“To deal with Jews, you need to be drunk,” explains one Jewish vendor to a gentile compatriot as I walk past. It’s as good an introduction as any to the colorful chaos of Kosherfest, the country’s biggest kiddush that also doubles as a national conference for the kosher industry. This year, the sprawling display filled the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Seacaucus, N.J., showcasing hundreds of booths featuring everything from seltzer to sushi bars.
I attended last week—and it was everything you would expect. There was all-you-can-eat potato kugel, a “kosher supervisor of the year” competition, and, inexplicably, a mini-golf area. Attendees could feast on samples of sausages, kosher beef jerky, and an impressive array of ice cream. And needless to say, you probably never saw more ways to smoke a salmon in one place.
