Hanukkah Celebrations on Tap Across Manhattan

Hanukkah, which lasts from Dec. 25 to Jan. 2, is quickly approaching. Manhattan residents will be able to participate in menorah lightings and related events up to and into the season.

NYC Mayor Eric Adams held an early Hanukkah reception at Gracie Mansion on the evening of Dec. 17, where he referenced the ancient Jewish army known as the Maccabees, who are celebrated on the holiday for seizing Jerusalem from the Seleucid Empire: “You know, when you start to reflect and think about it, during 164 BCE, when this entire narrative came about in the start of Chanukah, you think about the Maccabees, who were strong enough to stand up and to fight for what is right and to reclaim what was deserving to be in the right hands. We have to ask ourselves, where are the Maccabees today? Where are they? Who’s willing to stand up and fight for what is right?”

On Dec. 25, the beginning of Hanukkah proper, the Museum at Eldridge Street will be holding a “Jazzukkah” celebration as part of a menorah lighting ceremony; classic Hanukkah tracks such as “Ma’oz Tzur” or “I Have a Little Dreidel” will see a creative jazz rendition. Rare menorahs that the museum holds from Aharon Ben Zalman’s private collection—which, according to the New York Times, have origins from colonial America to modern India—will be lit as part of the event.

Of course, there will also be the daily holiday lighting of the world’s largest menorah next to Central Park, at the southeast corner of 59th St. & Fifth Ave. Standing at 36 ft. and weighing in at 4,000 pounds, the yearly menorah officially earned its classification as world’s largest menorah from the Guinness Book of World Record. It is likely that the lightings will occur at around 5:30 p.m. on every night of Hanukkah. Other nightly menorah lightings will also be held at Hudson Yards, next to the Vessel.

On Dec. 29, the South Street Seaport in Lower Manhattan will hold its annual Hanukkah celebration, which will reportedly feature live music from the FiDi Hebrew School and the lighting of a six-foot tall chocolate menorah.

There will also be plenty of related food and drink to consume both before and after the holiday season. People eager to celebrate the varied history of Jewish cuisine on the Lower East Side can do so on Friday, Dec. 20, during the Eldridge Eats Food Tour. Those that miss it can attend later tours early in the new year on Jan. 5 or Jan. 21, which will both be held at 5:30 p.m.

According to the organizers of the tour, it “will focus on remaining vestiges and surviving buildings of an era of mass Jewish immigration, when the streets were lined with stores and pushcarts, including Jewish delicatessens, bakeries, pickle stands, and cafeterias, to name a few.” Rugelach, pickles, knishes, and dumplings will be some of the delectable offerings that attendees can expect.

For those looking for a special Hanukkah-themed cocktail, there will be a pop-up establishment known as the Maccabees Bar coming to 24 Cortlandt Alley in Tribeca, which will be in town from Dec. 23 through Jan. 3. According to SecretNYC, featured recipes include the “Latke Sour”—which will have apple brandy, potato, lemon, egg white, havana, and hyde bitters—and the “Ocho Kandelikas (Spanish for ‘Eight Candles’),” which will have olive oil gin, honey, apricot, almond, and lemon.