New York Street Food

Rafiqi's

Sabrina Smith from the Baruch College School of Journalism investigated street food safety in New York and filed the following report:

From the smell of spicy Halal food to the delicious taste of indulgent cupcakes, vendors look forward to the next customer transaction. But there is one thing that these street-smart businessmen and women do not hope for: the visit from a government official.  “The inspections are surprises, it could be anyone, anywhere and anytime coming to inspect the cart,” said Teriza Ebid, a vendor who works the Halal Food cart located on Park and Lexington Avenue.

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Tilapia from Kwik Meal cart

ONE FISH, TWO FISH, JANUARY 1st, NO FISH (Update)

After freaking out street vendors and the bloggers who love them yesterday, the Health Department has emailed us to say it was all a big misunderstanding. A provision in the Health Department’s new code raised eyebrows by declaring that “no fish, shellfish, or any food consisting of or made with an aquatic animal…shall be prepared, stored, held for service or sold from a mobile food vending unit.” That’s what it says, but it’s not what they meant!

A spokesperson for the Health Department just sent us this statement: “The Health Department currently prohibits, and will continue to prohibit the sale of raw shellfish from a mobile food cart. However, the wording in the recent amendments to the Health Code effectively prohibit the sale of all seafood, raw and cooked, and that was unintentional. The Health Department intends to fix this, and will not enforce this amendment as written. So, everybody take a deep breath and stop taking the Health Department’s rules so literally. [Gothamist]

Tilapia from Kwik Meal cart

Midtown Lunch discovered a Dept of Health resolution scheduled to go into effect January 1st that bans street vendors from selling fish or shellfish from a “mobile vending unit”.

While some might question the sanity of eating fish or shellfish from a New York food cart or truck, there are some good choices out there.  I’ve enjoyed the fried cod from the Schnitzel & Things truck, and have heard good things about the fish over rice from Kwik Meal.

Hopefully, this will get reversed before its too late, but if not, it will be another example of the government trying to help people and screwing it up worse. [Midtown Lunch]

53rd and 6th Food Cart

The trial started yesterday in the infamous “falafel cart” slaying of October 2006.  According to news reports, a teenager and 2 friends cut in line at the well-known 53rd and 6th food cart.  One person in line left and got into their SUV, then drove up and stabbed and killed one of the line-cutters.    The man said he was acting in self-defense, but walking away and coming back to stab someone doesn’t exactly sound like self-defense.   The media calls it the “falafel cart” stabbing, but this cart doesn’t even serve falafel.  It was also 4am at the time.  I wonder if the defendant is going to end up cutting in line at the prison commisary. [Gothamist]

Did you ever have someone try to cut in line, and if so, what was the outcome?

For those of you in NJ, there is also a thriving food truck scene.  There are currently 33 food trucks in Hoboken, 18 in Secaucus, and numerous others including the Louisiana Spice Truck in Jersey City.

I know what you’re thinking.  How safe is it to eat from a food truck in NJ?  The Hudson Reporter recently did some investigative journalism, and concluded it is safe.  Food trucks in NJ have to follow the same laws as restaurants, although there are various local laws that need to be followed about where you can park.  It’s easy to hate on NJ, but they seem to be on the ball with their food trucks. [Hudson Reporter]

Have you eaten at a food truck in NJ?  If so, what was your favorite one?