Happy Throwback Thursday. You may be wondering why I have a picture of a Zep and call this post a Throwback Thursday, and you will soon figure out why. Norristown is a place of many identities, traditions, triumphs and tragedies. We have all seen things come and go...then come back and go again. But one thing that will never go away is the tradition of the Norristown Zep!
Norristown's most prized possession is the Zep! Sorry if you're reading this close to lunchtime. When I lived in Florida, my roommates approached me and said "why are you making your sub that way?" I quickly took offense and sat them down to explain a REAL sandwich and how the mess they get from Subway is an insult to the real deal. Well not exactly like that, but you get it. I was passionate about something that can only be found in Norristown.
It was like when I tried explaining Wawa when the first store opened in Orlando. They squirmed when I gave them the idea of gas station food, until they tried it! I made them a Zep and guess what they began to make each day for lunch!?
Point is, our Zep is a tradition we should be very proud of and we should share more often. When growing up, there were dozen of sandwich shops in Norristown that made Zeps. I guarantee if I were to ask, we will all have a different answer for the best in town.
When you discuss Norristown making a comeback and creating an identity, a simple Zep can be the answer. Sounds crazy, right? Well it isn't when you look at the other things we are known for today. When surrounding towns are asked to describe Norristown in one word, you're given response that most likely has something to do with anything negative. So how can we change that? One word...FOOD!
Up until the 90s, Norristown once held a festival dedicated to the Zep where businesses came together to feature their best Zep as a competition. This went away for one reason or another and I hope to see it make its return.
If we begin to host an annual ZepFest and highlight our remaining sandwich shops that still make the traditional Zep, we will begin to attract more outsiders for lunch. Remember the new expansion project happening on Lafayette to connect us with the turnpike? Think of a families passing by on vacation stopping at the Norristown exit just to buy a Zep from Lou's.
But first, we need to market the Zep. Going back to my story with my roommates, I had to educate them on what the sandwich was. I hate sourcing Wikipedia, but if you were to read about Norristown on wiki, you won't find one sentence talking about Norristown being the origin of the Zep. Today, Zeps can be found all over Montgomery County, but there's no argument that it started in Norristown with Eve's and Lou's. So why not parade that around?
The first mission of Norristown Business Association is... Promote business growth by offering programs designed to strengthen and expand the income potential of
businesses within the area. (src. http://www.norristownba.org/). So I encourage NBA to promote the growth of our small sandwich shops to expand revenue in the area. Promote the Zeps along with the other great food in Norristown!
So I can talk all day about how much of an asset a simple sandwich is for Norristown, but I will leave the rest up to you. Remind Norristown why we should start talking about our hidden gem and share it with the outside world!
Update: I changed the picture to represent Norristown's Zep. Which is a kaiser or round bread instead of a hoagie roll like surrounding towns do.
