PLANET CHOCKO – art/music/movies/beyond » 11th annual Egg Roll and Egg Cream Festival on the lower east side

11th annual Egg Roll and Egg Cream Festival on the lower east side

June 13th, 2011 by Mr. C

The 11th annual egg roll and egg cream festival kicked off last sunday at the Eldridge Street Synagogue (Museum at Eldridge street) of lower manhattan! This is a special day set aside to celebrate Chinese & Jewish cultures as both ethnicities have lived, worked, & enjoyed each others company in this area where lower east side jews meet chinatown! A whole host of events including performances, folk art demos, food demos, arts & craft making, & language lessons in chinese and yiddish where on hand. Some of these events included performances from a Klezmer band, a Chinese folk orchestra, & a playact from a peking opera troupe. Some really neat folk art demos included jewish papercutting, yarmulke making, mah jong lessons and play, chinese brush painting, chinese paper folding & knot tying, & tzitzit tying. Food demos like challah making, dumpling making, & a chinese tea ceremony were on the schedule as well. The kids really looked liked they had fun making their own yarmulke, designing paper fans, & paper dragons! And don’t forget the egg rolls & egg creams that were on sale! I cheated and didn’t have the egg rolls but I could not pass up on the egg cream! If it wasn’t for me inhaling that lamb burger from Xian Famous foods just around the corner, I would of devoured me an egg roll or two in a chinatown new york minute! I couldn’t stay for the entire event but I did document a few festivities on hand underneath the tents on eldridge street! If you haven’t visited the Eldridge Street Synagogue (Museum at Eldridge Street) then you really should make your way down there whether you’re jewish or not! It’s a beautiful & historic religious structure built in 1887! It offers a slice of lower manhattan that you must see in order to understand the history of NYC! Here’s the Museum’s mission statement:

The mission of the Museum at Eldridge Street is to strengthen, support, protect and promote the 1887 landmark Eldridge Street Synagogue as a dynamic cultural and educational center that tells the story of Jewish immigrant life at the turn of the last century, explores architecture and historic preservation, inspires reflection and cultural continuity, and fosters inter-group exchange.

You should also visit the Museum of Chinese in America as well if you are in lower manhattan!

Making an egg cream (Chocolate Syrup, Milk, then seltzer water)