Street Meat and Beyond
New York offers way more street food than just hot dogs. In fairness to non-sausage pushcarts, here’s a rundown of what I’ve seen around.
First off, there are two main types of carts: processing and non-processing. Processing carts perform some kind of preparatory function with the food: it is mixed, cooked, cut, heated, fried, melted, sliced, etc. A non-processing cart serves food as is. You can scoop ice cream on a non-processing cart, but once you pour chocolate syrup over the ice cream, you’re processing. Most carts are processing.
-Street Meat. These processing carts serve Halal meat, typically chicken, in a variety of forms: on a stick, over rice in a yogurt curry sauce, in a pita like a gyro. My lovely husband Joe coined the term “street meat”; these carts may have another nickname, but I don’t know it yet.
-Nuts 4 Nuts. These are processing carts that roast and lightly candy nuts like peanuts, cashews, and almonds; the nuts are served warm, and the smells rising from these carts are very enticing. I luh Nuts 4 Nuts. If you are concerned about sanitation and contamination, Nuts 4 Nuts carts are relatively safe.
-Mr. Softee. Okay, these are soft-serve ice cream trucks, not carts. In the summer they can be found every few blocks all over the city. They serve Good Humor ice cream novelties, as well as overpriced but pretty decent soft-serve.
-Roach Coaches. These carts tend to be boxier, with the cart operator inside the cart, not standing next to it. Roach coaches are especially popular in the morning, when they offer bagels, donuts, muffins, and coffee. Some roach coaches are processing, some are not. They might have a real name, but it’s not Roach Coach. Some Roach Coaches sell what are known as dirty water hot dogs—boiled franks served lazily on squishy buns. This is no way to treat a hot dog.
-“Park Carts”…I’m not sure how to describe these carts, other than to say that they always appear on the perimeters of big parks, like Prospect Park and Central Park. They sell Good Humor ice cream novelties, gross stale big-ass pretzels, hot dogs (grilled or dirty water), and knishes. Avoid these carts unless you are having a hunger emergency; their overpriced wares are of inferior quality.
-Produce carts. Usually these non-processing carts sell mostly fruit. The guys at these carts always lick their fingers before tearing open the plastic bags they bag your fruit in—gross!
-Italian ice carts. These carts are usually small, selling flavorful and refreshing Italian ice for pretty decent prices.
First off, there are two main types of carts: processing and non-processing. Processing carts perform some kind of preparatory function with the food: it is mixed, cooked, cut, heated, fried, melted, sliced, etc. A non-processing cart serves food as is. You can scoop ice cream on a non-processing cart, but once you pour chocolate syrup over the ice cream, you’re processing. Most carts are processing.
-Street Meat. These processing carts serve Halal meat, typically chicken, in a variety of forms: on a stick, over rice in a yogurt curry sauce, in a pita like a gyro. My lovely husband Joe coined the term “street meat”; these carts may have another nickname, but I don’t know it yet.
-Nuts 4 Nuts. These are processing carts that roast and lightly candy nuts like peanuts, cashews, and almonds; the nuts are served warm, and the smells rising from these carts are very enticing. I luh Nuts 4 Nuts. If you are concerned about sanitation and contamination, Nuts 4 Nuts carts are relatively safe.
-Mr. Softee. Okay, these are soft-serve ice cream trucks, not carts. In the summer they can be found every few blocks all over the city. They serve Good Humor ice cream novelties, as well as overpriced but pretty decent soft-serve.
-Roach Coaches. These carts tend to be boxier, with the cart operator inside the cart, not standing next to it. Roach coaches are especially popular in the morning, when they offer bagels, donuts, muffins, and coffee. Some roach coaches are processing, some are not. They might have a real name, but it’s not Roach Coach. Some Roach Coaches sell what are known as dirty water hot dogs—boiled franks served lazily on squishy buns. This is no way to treat a hot dog.
-“Park Carts”…I’m not sure how to describe these carts, other than to say that they always appear on the perimeters of big parks, like Prospect Park and Central Park. They sell Good Humor ice cream novelties, gross stale big-ass pretzels, hot dogs (grilled or dirty water), and knishes. Avoid these carts unless you are having a hunger emergency; their overpriced wares are of inferior quality.
-Produce carts. Usually these non-processing carts sell mostly fruit. The guys at these carts always lick their fingers before tearing open the plastic bags they bag your fruit in—gross!
-Italian ice carts. These carts are usually small, selling flavorful and refreshing Italian ice for pretty decent prices.
posted by Lefty at 1:21 PM
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