This is the fourth year the Museum of the City of New York has invited artists to use gingerbread to recreate iconic city landmarks. Each year the entries get more elaborate making the competition even tougher. But who wins doesn’t matter to the many people who come out to admire these incredible works of art with the aroma of gingerbread in the air.

Walking through the exhibition, it’s easy to say that no other city in the world boasts so many well-known buildings, statues, bridges, hotels and other landmarks that can inspire artists. But this year, there were some surprises.

Statue of Liberty

The Newtown Creek Wastewater Plant

While the Statue of Liberty made an appearance and won a prize, a lesser known facility – the Newtown Creek Wastewater Plant – received several awards. Ever see it for real? Maybe time to take a trip there.

“Cawfee and a Bagel”

Another entry that won recognition includes two items that are ubiquitous in New York – the bagel and the takeout coffee cup that says, “We are happy to serve you.”

Other standouts, even if they didn’t win prizes, depicted the Brooklyn Bridge, Broadway, the Chelsea Hotel, and the Roosevelt Island Tramway. 

Conference House

While the main ingredient is, of course, gingerbread, bakers also utilized other sweet items to create the look they wanted. Filiz Cihan, who created The Conference House, located in the Tottenville neighborhood of Staten Island, somehow found the ingredients to mimic the gray stones that define the house, a National and New York City landmark. 

A scavenger hunt keeps children busy studying the gingerbread sculptures to find Santa, Spider Man, a black cat, and masks on a stage. 

The exhibition runs through January 19.

The Museum of the City of New York
1220 Fifth Avenue at 103rd Street

Photos by Woman Around Town