The "Borscht Belt" was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-20th century. Physically, it consisted of a set of large hotels in the Catskill mountains, north- and north-west of New York City.
Grossinger's, The Concord, and Kutcher's are the ones I remember, but there were more.
They catered to mostly Jewish families from New York City. Often the kids would come up to stay at one of the resorts during the week, and Dad would try to join them on the weekends. The more wealthy would spend maybe two or three weeks there. Lots of things for the kids to do, like a summer camp. Lots of things for mom and dad to do too. At night they had what might be called "variety shows," like you'd see on Ed Sullivan or the Jackie Gleason Show, but live.
They also had terrific food. Very high quality, typically all-you-can-eat, but served at your table by waiters who were also from NYC.
I was lucky enough to stay at the Concord for several days during the off-season when I was in high school. It was a wonderful experience I'll never forget. I think the Concord was razed some years ago.
Many famous comedians got their start working the "Borscht Belt." I believe Billy Crystal's movie Mr. Saturday Night is about one such comedian.
The movie Dirty Dancing is a pretty good representation of what a vacation at a Borscht Belt resort was like.
Thanks for the additional info. Now I am better informed.
Woody Allen, Mel Brooks, and Carl Reiner wrote for Sid Caesar's show early in their career. All four were from the Borscht Belt.
It’s important to point out the main reason the Borscht Belt came into existence. Many/most resort hotels in the Northeast US were restricted (i.e., would not let Jews stay there) up to the late 1950’s/early 60’s.
Those were the days!