n the heart of Manhattan, during the 2025 holiday season, the Starrett-Lehigh Building hosts one of the city’s most distinctive and representative cultural exhibitions: GingerBread Lane, the world’s largest gingerbread village. This monumental installation now a staple of New York’s festive calendar has drawn families, tourists, and culinary art enthusiasts since early December, all eager to experience a kind of magic that goes far beyond a traditional holiday treat.
The exhibit, free and open to the public in the building’s lobby, spans roughly 25 square meters and features more than 700 handcrafted houses and storefronts. Each structure is carved from gingerbread and decorated with icing and candy, recreating iconic urban landmarks such as a classic yellow taxi, a stretch of Fifth Avenue, the city’s unmistakable subway entrances, and the emblematic Macy’s store on 34th Street.
The meticulous attention to detail turns every walk through the edible village into an urban narrative: a donut shop next to a halal restaurant, tributes to the city’s cultural diversity, and references to both Jewish and Muslim traditions all reflect the pluralism that defines New York.
The project is the work of pastry chef Jon Lovitch, who has spent more than three decades building gingerbread holiday villages and has held the Guinness World Record for the largest creation of its kind since 2013. What began as a handcrafted passion project has evolved into a professional endeavor that now requires nearly nine months of planning and execution each year.
Lovitch, a former executive chef at New York hotels, says his primary motivation has always been to spark joy. “This is the most fun part now. When people come to see it and they’re really happy… seeing the smiles is what I enjoy the most,” he said in a recent interview.
This holiday phenomenon is not confined to New York in 2025. GingerBread Lane will also appear in other major U.S. cities, including Boston, Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Houston, expanding the reach of a tradition that blends art, urban heritage, and community celebration.
In a city that every December competes in creativity from the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree to the light displays at Hudson Yards GingerBread Lane remains among the most visited events, not only for its artisanal spectacle but for its ability to evoke nostalgia and celebrate diversity during the festive season.