Whatever you call it, P'burg wants to celebrate this slice of Jersey life.
Phillipsburg's Pennsylvania neighbors have long been in on the festival scene.
Bethlehem has Musikfest and Oktoberfest, as well as celebrations of Celtic culture and blueberries. Easton has fests featuring both bacon and garlic.
Whatever you call it -- pork roll or Taylor ham -- Phillipsburg wants to celebrate this slice of Jersey life. (NJ Advance Media file photo) But Phillipsburg, watching all this happen from across the Delaware River, wants to tailor to a distinctly Jersey festival flavor: pork roll.
The Garden State breakfast delicacy -- also, sometimes fiercely, referred to as Taylor ham -- has a "regional flare, a regional specialty," Mayor Stephen Ellis said Thursday, disclosing plans for a pork roll festival this fall.
The plans are all very preliminary. A date has not been set, Ellis said, though a September timeframe is targeted for the event on the riverfront.
N.J. decides: Pork roll or Taylor ham?
Lauren Spence, manager of Easton and Phillipsburg initiatives for the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, said Ellis shared the idea with the chamber a few weeks ago, but that specifics have not been determined. However, the chamber is on board with the idea.
"We try to incorporate the successes of our neighbors," Spence said.
It won't be the first such festival in the state. Trenton has held pork roll fests for the last three years, two simultaneously in 2016, as well as eating contests. At one, competitive eater Joey Chestnut scarfed 43 pork roll (ahem, Taylor ham) sandwiches in 10 minutes.
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.