Hi guys! It starts on September 17th, so please save the Date for the Year’s Most Anticipated Street Food Showdown: The Vendy Awards!. It’s the nation’s original and most beloved food truck competition, and it will be back for its 12th year on Saturday. The annual event will return to Governors Island to showcase some of New York City’s best and most creative street food vendors. Last year, more than 2,000 New Yorkers turned up to judge the grill-to-grill cook-off.
Food Truck Competition Judged by Celebrities
Food Vendors will compete for the coveted Vendy Cup, along with Rookie of the Year, Best Dessert, and Best Market Vendor. The Food Truck Competition will be judged by a panel of celebrity judges. The popular People’s Choice Award will be determined by the crowd’s vote. A new category will be announced in the coming months. In 2015, fan-favorite Snow Day swept the competition, going home with both the Vendy Cup and People’s Choice Award. This year, a new crop of vendors will compete for their profession’s highest honor.
Nominations for vendors are being accepted right now, so loyal NYC street vendor patrons can nominate their choice for best sidewalk chef online at http://www.vendyawards.streetvendor.org/nominate.
“We’re proud to bring the Vendy Awards back to Governors Island to showcase New York’s exploding street food culture,” said Sean Basinski, Director of the Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center. “Over the last decade, the Vendy Awards has become a platform for vendors from all over the city to present their creativity and skill. It’s also a great way for New Yorkers to taste the latest and greatest in street food, and support these hard-working sidewalk heroes. We invite all New Yorkers to nominate their favorite cart or truck, and snag a ticket to truly celebrate what New York’s street food culture has to offer.”
The Vendy Awards are an annual event to benefit the Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center, a membership-based organization that provides advocacy and legal services for nearly 2,000 vendor members. The Vendys’ modest beginnings took place in 2005 in an East Village garage; today, the nation’s first street food event has expanded across the country to include events in Los Angeles and Philadelphia. The Vendy Awards also launched the successful Vendy Plaza, an outdoor marketplace located in East Harlem’s La Marqueta.
