2010 was a jam-packed year for New York Street Food. Join us now for a quick trip down memory lane as we revisit our favorite street food events of 2010, discuss our favorite street food vendors of the past year, and talk about what we are looking most forward to in 2011.
Our Favorite Street Food Events of 2010
The 2010 Vendy Awards -A hot (but not brutal) summer day, a picturesque location on Governor’s Island, and the best street food vendors in New York, if not the USA. Not a competition so much as a gathering of chefs with only one thing on their mind – serving everyone the best food, drink and dessert they possibly can.
After being nominated for the 3rd time, The King of Falafel & Shawarma finally took home the Vendy Cup, although we could not have argued if any of the other finalists in the Main Category had won. Schnitzel & Things, Bistro Truck, El Rey del Sabor and Patacon Pisao were all worthy finalists, and I’m sure we will see some of them again as future Vendy finalists. Click here for our detailed write-up of the Main Category competition.
In the Dessert Category – Big Gay Ice Cream Truck and Dessert Truck were repeat finalists, with Guerrilla Ice Cream, Kelvin Natural Slush and Yao’s Dragon Beard Candy all first-time dessert finalists. With it being such a hot day, we figured it would be one of the cold dessert vendors who won – and it was – with Kelvin Natural Slush winning the Dessert Category amidst strong competition. Click here for our detailed write-up of the Dessert Category.
The Rookie of the Year Category was a little easier to handicap. In our opinion, it was between Souvlaki GR and Mexicue – with Souvlaki GR winning the Rookie of the Year Vendy Award for 2010. Cinnamon Snail put together some very interesting dishes, but we don’t think vegan food has enough widespread appeal to win a category voted on by the attendees. A-Pou’s Taste and 99% Vegetarian were good, but did not reach the heights attained by Souvlaki GR and Mexicue. Click here for our detailed write-up of the Rookie of the Year Category.
Asian Night Market – Our 2nd favorite street food event of 2010 was the Lucky Rice Asian Night Market held back in April under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass in DUMBO, hosted by David Chang.
Top-notch Asian restaurants such as Buddakan, Zengo, Momofuku Milk Bar, Asia Dog and Setai Miami gave out small plates of their best dishes – and it was awesome! A separate bar area with wonderful beer, wine and sake choices was the finishing touch.
Another great location and great chefs combining for a uniquely memorable event. There were so many great vendors, it took 3 postings for us to completely cover the Asian Night Market.
Eat|Drink|Explore Malaysia in Vanderbilt Hall of Grand Central Station was another very interesting event. I would say it was unique, but our sources told us this will likely become an annual event.
Excellent Malaysian restaurants such as Betel, Double Crown and the new Ember Room sold small plates of their best dishes, Malaysian dancers performed traditional dances, and traditional Malaysian kites turned the cavernous Vanderbilt Hall into an intimate venue. Definitely keep an eye out for this one in 2011.
Our (Totally Subjective) Favorite Street Food Vendors of 2010
The Vendy Awards did a great job of nominating the best street food vendors of 2010, and most of our favorite vendors have been recognized by the Vendy organization.
Our first street food crush was Schnitzel & Things, and they consistently delivered quality street food again throughout 2010. We also had consistently great meals from Bistro Truck, Souvlaki GR, Mexicue, El Rey del Sabor, Calexico Carne Asada and our local guy, Carnegie John, who still does one of the better chicken over rice dishes around.
Some of the Better New Street Food Vendors of 2010
In addition to the Vendy Rookie of the Year nominees Souvlaki GR and Mexicue, there were some other new vendors who definitely caught our attention.
Chef Samir of the Comme Ci, Comme Ça Truck served excellent cous cous, Taïm Mobile fortified their position as the best falafel sandwich in New York, Korilla BBQ created a new archetype for Korean tacos and burritos, and the Cinnamon Snail took vegan cuisine to a whole new level.
Other notable newcomers were Pera Turkish Tacos and Ladle of Love, both in the former Tavern on the Green space, the Cevap Truck, the Desi Truck and QBA Cuban Kitchen, who need to come into the city from NJ more often.
What We Are Looking Forward To In 2011
It’s always nice to see someone you championed from Day 1 succeed. Souvlaki GR went from a concept in June to a reality in August to a Vendy Award winner in September, and we are really looking forward to the Souvlaki GR LES restaurant in the spring.
We also expect great things from the Schnitzel & Things restaurant, which should be a big success for Oleg & company.
2011 will also be the year we check out street food in at least 2 other great street food cities. We are going to L.A. towards the end of January for a short week and we will be in Austin for a few days in mid-March for SXSW. There won’t be nearly enough time to do either of these cities justice, but we will certainly try our best to cover the bases and report back to you.
We would like to thank all the street food vendors and everyone who reads New York Street Food for making 2010 a year that surpassed our highest expectations. 2011 will be even better!
(For more information on any vendor mentioned above, check the listings to the right.)
