Midtown Lunch

Hallelujah! Food truck season is officially upon us. We’ve already told you about Urban Lobster, Chinese Mirch, Munchie Mobile, and Blend Latin Cuisine which have all debuted in the last few weeks. And it turns out this is just the beginning…

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Now through May 15, 35 of our favorite food trucks will be helping to raise funds for Citymeals-on-Wheels, an organization that delivers meals to the city’s housebound elderly. All the trucks will be collecting donations, while two rotating trucks will donate 5% of their revenue each day. It’s a partnership with the New York City Food Truck Association and you can find a list of participating trucks here. Who knew that Korean tacos could actually be used for good?

I had never been to City Hall and certainly never sat through a hearing before. But as I mentioned yesterday morning, I attended one in which the Street Vendor Project (the organizers of the Vendy Awards) and their representatives attempted to pass two bills (Intro. 434 and 435) into law regarding the unreasonable $1000 fines that food vendors are susceptible to.

I was there representing Midtown Lunch and our perspective as food cart lovers. It was a fascinating and eye-opening afternoon. In the morning, the Council Board questioned the five departments that regulate food carts (Mayor’s Office, NYPD, Department of Health, Department of Consumer Affairs, Environmental Control Board) and then testimonies were given from many different perspectives – everybody from vendors, lawyers, historians, and food writers like myself. I actually was the last one to testify at 3:30pm (I guess I was the lowest on the totem pole) and was proud to support the vendors and their plight.

Sean Basinsiki, the Director of the Street Vendor Project, told me it might be a few months before the bills are actually voted on and the outcome is determined, but the turn-out and arguments were compelling and the hopes are high in favor of the vendors.

As you may know by now, the Street Vendor Project has been working on passing two bills that will lower the price of tickets for food vendors. The tickets can now cost up to $1000 per violation . And the violations might be as minor as setting up a foot too close to an intersection. If a vendor gets a few of these tickets, it can easily put them out of business.

There will be a hearing at City Hall today starting at 10am to get these bill passed. All who are available to come out and show their support are encouraged. I will be there representing Midtown Lunch and fighting to save our vendors from being shut down due to exorbitant fines.

You can read the composed testimony I will be giving and watch a short documentary about the campaign after the jump.

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One of the allures of food trucks (aside from cheap, delicious food) is the fact that they are able to move around the city to bring the food to a wide audience. You never know where they will be unless you follow them on Twitter, Facebook or the ML Twitter Tracker. Most have a set schedule from week to week to ensure equal love to all the hungry neighborhoods of New York.

However, more and more food vendors are settling down to one particular neighborhood. In Midtown, Uncle Gussy’s, Jianetto’s Pizza, and Valducci’s can usually be found at the same spot day in and day out. Downtown, you’ll always find Souvlaki GR and Our Heroes. Even Wafels & Dinges have become a little more idle with three of their carts always parked at the same place — one at Columbus Circle and two at Central Park.
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We noticed this tweet today from Luke’s Lobster when asked if they plan on returning to their regular Bryant Park spot. Turns out the police have continued to crack down on food trucks parking in that area and have threatened “severe penalties” if they continue to show up. We used to see Taim around these parts at least once a week and even the smaller guys (namely the Mediterranean Grill truck who briefly parked on 39th) have been victims of police harassment. This was a prime location for many trucks and a great lunch option for those that work nearby and don’t want to settle with the food kiosks inside the park. I wonder if this has anything to do with Dan Biederman, who recently called street vendors “terrible citizens” and just so happens to be the head of the Bryant Park Corporation.

Remember when Dan Biederman, the President of the 34th Street Partnership, called our favorite lunch vendors “ugly” and “terrible citizens” a few weeks back? Well, the vendors aren’t going to take those sort of demeaning attacks. Today at 10:30am, dozens of vendors will join the Street Vendor Project to rally outside the Partnership offices on Sixth Avenue (between 40th and 41st Street) demanding an apology from Biederman. If you can slip out of work and want to show your support, come on down.  Vendor Power!!

We love Street Vendor Project here at Midtown Lunch. Not only do they throw one of the best food event of the year (the Vendys) they do noble work on behalf of our beloved street carts and food trucks. Amazingly enough they turn 10 years old this year and to celebrate they’ll be throwing a special party on March 27th! It will take place downtown at Judson Memorial Church, from 7pm to 10pm, with live music, drinks, and food from past Vendy Award winners. Early bird tickets are just $45, but are only available until tomorrow at 6pm, so grab one before the price goes up!

UPDATE: After this post initially went up we got word that Solber Pupusas and Paty’s Tacos will both be at the event… with more vendors to be announced soon.  Stay tuned!

DNAinfo published a story yesterday about the ongoing tension between brick and mortar business owners and food vendors. The 34th Street Partnership is now attempting to launch a campaign that would reduce the number of vendors allowed in Midtown. They quoted the head of the Partnership who called the vendors “the ugliest collection of vehicles,” and “terrible citizens.” They also want the carts to “beautify” themselves to look more like attractive carts like Wafels & Dinges. And they claim this campaign would make Midtown much more pleasant for residents.

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In case you missed it on Eater yesterday, our very own Blondie & Brownie scored a book deal this week!  The project is tentatively titled “New York ala Carte” and will be a “guide to the city’s gourmet food cart scene, with more than 60 recipes from New York’s top vendors.”  We don’t want to give away all the secrets, but I think it goes without saying that many of our favorite Midtown Lunch vendors will be highlighted (and you might see the names of a few more ML contributors popping up to help with the project.)  As the project starts to come together we’ll be sure to fill you guys in before anybody else, but for now you can get a few more details about the book over on their blog, and make sure to congratulate them in the comments.