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.

Photo Courtesy of Detroit Publishing, Library of Congress, Circa 1900

Yesterday we linked to a Crain’s report that has revenue from some food trucks down a whopping 70%, a fact that undoubtedly has to do with food truck owners struggling with unclear laws, a barrage of parking tickets, and other difficulties that make operating their small businesses much more difficult than it should be. Yet this is nothing new, just the latest batch of regulations and restrictions street vendors have had to overcome for centuries.

Since vending from pushcarts has always been a great way for new immigrants to get a start in their new country, the food has changed with the wave of immigrant groups that have come through this city. The earliest street food was not hot dogs or pretzels, but in fact oysters and clams. At one time, this was the food of the masses and even the poorest citizens ate oysters for dinner. As European immigrants continued to come to New York, the street food changed to hot corn, pickles, knishes, and sausages. In the 1970’s and 80’s, it was predominantly Greek souvlaki and kabobs being sold from carts. And then as the Muslim population increased, so did the halal carts which now make up most of our lunches here in Midtown.

Photo Courtesy of Library of Congress, Circa 1915

The first law regulating food carts was known as the Thirty Minute Law, wherein a pushcart had to re-locate every thirty minutes. That was a difficult law to enforce (especially in the overcrowded poorer neighborhood of the Lower East Side) and the law was probably disobeyed more than it was obeyed. In fact, the very first pushcart market was established on Hester Street in 1886 when four Jewish peddlers decided to stay put for much longer than 30 minutes. These markets grew in popularity across lower Manhattan. While many organizations made attempts, there was little regulation at these markets and corruption, uncleanliness, and chaos ran rampant.

Photo Courtesy of Gordon Parks (Library of Congress), Circa 1943

During the Depression the faces of the vendors changed as many people were out of work and took to selling the iconic 5 cent apple from a pushcart. I’m sure it’s not a coincidence that during another low point in our economic history, we’re seeing lots of native born citizens taking to the street selling everything from ice cream sandwiches to grilled cheese to Korean tacos.

Moore Street Market; Photo Courtesy of Brooklyn Public Library

Around that time, Mayor LaGuardia attempted to put a ban on street food and lose the open air pushcart markets. He established indoor public markets (like the Essex Street Market) and sought to “legitimize” vendors by having them work in a stationary enclosed space. The vendors would now have to pay rent, they were forced to vend in close quarters with their competition, and their customers would have to come find them. Needless to say, this wasn’t a very popular idea and ultimately, of course, street vendors were thankfully not eliminated.

More recently, Mayor Giuliani tried a similar approach in the 90’s to “clean up the streets”. He effectively closed more than 100 new streets to vendors and proposed re-locating vendors back into open air puschart markets. This didn’t work in the ’30’s and it didn’t work back then.

Despite what Crain’s hints at, food vendors are not going anywhere in this city. They’re culturally, economically, and culinarily important. But while the type of food sold on the street continues to evolve, the battle between lawmakers and vendors remains eerily familiar.

Interested in taking one of Brian’s tours? This is just part of the information you get, in addition to six food samplings. Check out urbanoyster.com to find out how to purchase tickets.

In the last few weeks, there have been some encouraging signs including three trucks (Desi Truck, Rickshaw, Crepes Truck) parked on 50th and 6th side by side that haven’t not been bothered at all – except by the competition from the new Thai food cart on the same corner. ML favorite Taim Mobile has even made quite a few appearances in Midtown the last few weeks (after a long absence) without any trouble. And it’s not uncommon to see Wafels & Dinges, Crisp, or Red Hook Lobster Truck back on 46th near 6th Avenue on any given day. It seems like now that the summer has ended and the glut of new food trucks has slowed, business is starting to return to normal.

However, not everything is rosy. The Treats Truck made their first non-promotional appearance in Midtown since the ban last Monday on 38th and 5th, but were told to leave by some undercover cops. Kim tried again on Wednesday at her old 45th Street spot and that seemed to work for the afternoon, but needless to say she’s discouraged and skeptical. Although if we’re lucky, we may see her a bit more often in Midtown and won’t have to just live vicariously through her new cookbook. In the meantime, follow the trucks on the ML Twitter Tracker and be sure to show your support.

If you’ve been by 52nd Street in the last few days, you may have noticed some signs taped up announcing a public hearing by the Vendor Task Force Committee. The meeting will address regulations regarding street vendors and it’s open to the public. So I urge all of you who have an interest in the future of food trucks and carts in the city to attend and show your support. It starts at 6:30pm tonight in the auditorium of the New York Blood Center, which is located at 310 East 67th Street (between 2nd and 1st Avenue).

Related:
Own A Print of the Elwood Smith Vendor Wars Cartoon from the New York Times

Check out the videos after the jump.

Related:
If Bloomberg Loves Calexico, He Should Judge the Vendy Awards!
Mayor Bloomberg Comes Out on Both Sides of the Food Truck Issue