Jewish Food Festival: Eat brisket, kugel and matzah ball soup

If you go

What: York Jewish Community Center's 2015 Jewish Food Festival

When: noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, April 25

Where: 2000 Hollywood Drive, York

Details: Free admission. Cash-only purchases. For more information, visit yorkjcc.org or call 843-0918.

Brisket, kugel and matzah ball soup are just a few of the traditional Jewish foods available this Sunday at the Jewish Food Festival.

Rachel Singer, a director at the Jewish Community Center, said this is the 25th year the community center has hosted the food festival. Singer said the event has grown a lot since those first couple years, to feature about two dozen vendors from the business community and an expected crowd of about 1,500 people.

"The main reason why it got such a buzz is really there is no Jewish kosher deli around here where you can get what it is that we're serving," she said.

The most popular dish is probably the brisket sandwich or platter, Singer said, along with pastrami, turkey and corned beef brought in from delicatessens in Baltimore.

Singer said the festival also hosts vendors ranging from Judaic artisans to local businesses. The festival will also feature the Avalon String Band, known for performing in the Mummers New Year's Parade in Philadelphia.

Vivian Lazar has been making food for the festival for four years. She said the recipes are all sourced from York County's Jewish community.

"We use old recipes from our mothers and our grandmothers, and they're foolproof because they've been around for so long," Lazar said. "We've found that the old recipes are the best."

Lazar brings a professional touch to the mix, however, since her parents are chefs who have owned restaurants in Israel, New York and Pittsburgh.

Lazar said aside from enjoying the food, the festival gives people a chance to broaden their cultural horizons.

"When we bring traditions and different religions in the community then we come together as people," Lazar said. "I think if there was more of that the world would be a better place."