# NYC Dopers: Do you really eat food from street vendors as much as portrayed? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 21, 2006, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004 "2006-12-21T01:19:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/1 "2006-12-21T01:19:15Z")
In just about every cop show set in New York, they all stop off for pretzels / hot dogs / pizza at sidewalk food carts. I’ve seen it in movies quite a bit too - most recently in that Kate Hudson movie “How To Lose [del]An Audience in Ten Minutes[/del] A Guy in 10 Days.” Do New Yorkers really do this? I can’t imagine going **near** a street vendor in San Francisco and buying food from them, unless I was craving rat, or wanted a nice dose of E. Coli, or perhaps Dysentery. Perhaps the vendors are strictly regulated in NYC or something? Maybe it’s an East Coast thing? ---
**Author:** ![Plan\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Plan\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Plan_B)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/2 "2006-12-21T01:39:44Z")
I used to buy a donut and coffee every morning from one of those carts. Now, when I’m in the financial district I try to buy lunch from one of the carts. Good spicy ethnic food. They depend on repeat custoemrs, so it has to be good, and healthy. ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/3 "2006-12-21T02:31:02Z")
My wife and I moved to San Francisco from NYC two years ago and were JUST lamenting the total lack of street vendors! It’s great to get a cheap (but fairly mediocre at best) cup of coffee off the street. Hot dogs? Fantastic. Gyros, falafel. Hell, even crepes. Fantastic and economical. Yes, I lived in NYC all my life and ate from street vendors at least several times a week. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/4 "2006-12-21T02:34:19Z")
Not in NYC, but I have fond memories of noshing on pickled herring and onions from pushcarts in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/5 "2006-12-21T02:39:07Z")
Not that much because we have a cafeteria in my building. But yeah, I’ll occassionally buy a street bagel, pretzel, gyros, or falafel. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/6 "2006-12-21T02:44:58Z")
I eat at vendors all the time when I’m in New York. Quicker and cheaper than a regular restaurant, and much better than MacDonald’s. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/7 "2006-12-21T02:49:07Z")
I usually get a dog or pretzel outside Yankee Stadium. I have always bought pretzels and drinks in Manhattan. It is extremely common in my experience. I have not bought falafel, but I know many that do. Salty Water Dogs are quite popular for a quick lunch on the go. Ice cream vendors in Central Park in July are printing money they do so well. Jim ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/8 "2006-12-21T03:00:19Z")
Sounds like there’s little concern for the quality of the food you would get. I guess it’s a “seller’s market” kind of thing. I would simply never trust food from a streetside cart in San Francisco. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/9 "2006-12-21T03:57:05Z")
It’s not as random as it seems. They’re street vendors, not nomads. When you work/live in the city, you pass the same carts every day. Get a bad meal, you’ll never return, and everyone in your office will know how you got sick. Get a good meal, a good cup of coffee, you’ll be back a couple times a week. Repeat business is good business for a street vendor. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/10 "2006-12-21T04:04:59Z")
Not so much as I used to, but yes. My oldest daughter used to prefer hot dogs from one particular vendor when I took her in to work. I’d offer her a meal anywhere in Manhattan and she’d lead me to this one hot dog cart with her eyes aglow in anticipation of her favorite meal in the world. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/11 "2006-12-21T04:08:07Z")
[QUOTE=Dooku] Sounds like there’s little concern for the quality of the food you would get. I guess it’s a “seller’s market” kind of thing. I would simply never trust food from a streetside cart in San Francisco. [/QUOTE] Are vendors in San Francisco not licensed or regulated by the Department of Health or some equivalent? Why would you be more nervous about a vendor than some other eating place? Do you actually know people who got sick eating from vendors in SF? ---
**Author:** ![Malienation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4af34b/32.png) [@Malienation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malienation)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/12 "2006-12-21T04:20:39Z")
[QUOTE=Dooku] Sounds like there’s little concern for the quality of the food you would get. I guess it’s a “seller’s market” kind of thing. I would simply never trust food from a streetside cart in San Francisco. [/QUOTE] [QUOTE=Cheesesteak] It’s not as random as it seems. They’re street vendors, not nomads. When you work/live in the city, you pass the same carts every day. Get a bad meal, you’ll never return, and everyone in your office will know how you got sick. Get a good meal, a good cup of coffee, you’ll be back a couple times a week. Repeat business is good business for a street vendor. [/QUOTE] What **Cheesesteak** said. The mark of a good “food town” is the ability to get a good meal at a good price at all price levels…and that includes the street vendor level. Well, NYC’s got that. What’s the deal in San Francisco? Why wouldn’t you trust food from a street vendor there? I mean, is there a epidemic of food cart related food poisoning or is SF a little too precious to rub elbows with the lower class? And c’mon: you throw hot dogs in a propane heated tank of water. How do you figure someone’s gonna fuck that up? ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/13 "2006-12-21T04:57:45Z")
Occasionally I’ll get a hot dog or a pretzel. I went through a knish phase. I’ll get a gatorade in Central Park on my bike rides in the summer. We often get our fruit from sidewalk fruit stands. I’m not big on the kebabs, though. ---
**Author:** ![42Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/4/6bbea6/32.png) [@42Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/42Geek)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 5:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/14 "2006-12-21T05:04:07Z")
Ahhhhhhhhhh, now I’m drooling thinking of those yummy crispy NYC pretzels…I ALWAYS buy a ton when I’m in NYC ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/15 "2006-12-21T07:58:58Z")
[QUOTE=42Geek] Ahhhhhhhhhh, now I’m drooling thinking of those yummy crispy NYC pretzels…I ALWAYS buy a ton when I’m in NYC [/QUOTE] And the roasted nuts on a cold morning… Now I’m hungry. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/16 "2006-12-21T11:11:51Z")
[QUOTE=Bambi Hassenpfeffer] And the roasted nuts on a cold morning… Now I’m hungry. [/QUOTE] [Nat King Cole] Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose…[/Nat King Cole] ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/17 "2006-12-21T13:18:20Z")
What \*\*Cheesesteak \*\* and others said - you don’t like it, don’t go back and the vendors are regulated. Mmmm, lamb and chicken with grilled onions and peppers over rice with some hot sauce on it from a gyro vendor - oh man! When I was working in the city, did it several times a week. So the answer to the OP - yes! ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/18 "2006-12-21T13:32:56Z")
[QUOTE=Bambi Hassenpfeffer] And the roasted nuts on a cold morning… Now I’m hungry. [/QUOTE] The funny thing is that I absolutely HATE the taste of those nuts, but the smell is fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Mindfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindfield/32/19759_2.png) [@Mindfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mindfield)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/19 "2006-12-21T13:53:34Z")
Not NYC, but Toronto, and I gotta say: _Nothing_ beats a street vendor hot dog. I don’t know what it is – the brand of franks, the cooking method, the city air or what, but there is absolutely nothing like a dog from a cart. Unfortunately TO doesn’t have nearly the kind of street vendor prevalence that NYC does – you might find the odd pretzel vendor or something, but it’s almost exclusively hot dogs and sausages. ---
**Author:** ![Lissla\_Lissar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lissla\_Lissar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissla_Lissar)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004/20 "2006-12-21T14:10:19Z")
That’s because there are ordinances against most street food. It’s stupid. I wish we had good, varied street food here. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nyc-dopers-do-you-really-eat-food-from-street-vendors-as-much-as-portrayed/385004.md?page=2)