(By: Sandy Eller) It was an epic celebration of food at Kosherpalooza 2024, as 4,000 people flocked to the Meadowlands Exposition Center in Secaucus to see, be seen, and be part of the foodie scene. Debuting last year after the official retirement of the long-running Kosherfest food show, the theme of Kosherpalooza this year was “Back for Seconds,” the event’s lighthearted approach evident throughout the day. From a water cooler decked out in a cover that said “Use your kup,” to a purple apron available for sale at the official show swag shop that had Kosherpalooza spelled out in yellow Hebrew letters accompanied by the words of the Hadran, it was clear that while business may have been conducted on the show floor, the day was equal parts food and fun. Hosted by Fleishigs Magazine and Powwow Events, Kosherpalooza featured more than 1 00 booths, demonstrations and panels, with plenty of goodies just waiting to be tasted. It was evident from the moment that Kosherpalooza opened that the show was a hot ticket, with the line for pre-registered attendees stretching out the door. Inside, there were similar-length lines at some of the hottest booths including Brooklyn Bagel, where the queue of people waiting for a small slice of cheesy pizza never seemed to get shorter at any point in time during the day. Also wowing the crowd was The Pizza Guy, whose meat pizzas included one topped with chumus, chopped liver, sauteed onions, honey and a techina drizzle, with a similarly complex assortment of ingredients topping their shawarma, buffalo chicken and deli pies. Unique sodas popped up in multiple places, including Happy Dad’s hard seltzer and teas, Bubala’s fruit infused seltzer water, and FreshFizz organic naturally sweetened drinks, which clock in at a relatively slim 60 calories per can. Vice president of sales Chava Schwartz explained that the product evolved out of her own family’s preferences and is available in hibiscus ginger ale, jalapeno limeade, date cola and the mojito-inspired mint lemonade, “My husband loves soda, my kids love soda and it was always a point of contention because I want the house to be healthier, so we came up with this,” Schwartz told Yeshiva World News. Freeze-dried candy was another popular item that appeared at more than one Kosherpalooza booth. Popinsanity, the Monsey-based gourmet kosher popcorn company that gained national attention after it appeared on Oprah Winfrey’s 2018 list of favorite things, debuted their line of freeze-dried candy including marshmallows, red hots and sour swirls for Purim this year. Newly married Sarah Newhouse of Astroeats shared that the seeds for her line of more than a dozen items, including freeze-dried ice creams and cheesecake, were sown during the pandemic. “It was during corona and everyone was locked inside and no one was able to move,” said Newhouse, whose unopened items have a 25 year shelf life. “I saw a video of all these non-Jewish people tasting freeze-dried candy and it wasn’t kosher andI wanted to taste it really badly. I begged my parents to buy me a machine. They finally agreed and I started a business.” I Want Romanian’s three foot long gift-boxed salami had showgoers stopping to get a better look. Owners Jacob and Dave Willner send meat from the iconic Chicago butcher store to buyers throughout the […]