Philly food trucks take on New York's best at Vendys

BY: Patrick Gordon

Mario Batali has been successful in the food industry as a chef and restaurateur for 30 years, so when he expresses an opinion on something, people tend to listen.

Case in point: the annual Vendy Awards, where Batali serves as a judge. Recognized as one of the top food events in New York City, the Vendys are an annual cook-off competition pitting the best food trucks in the Big Apple against each other for street vendor supremacy.  Nearly twenty food trucks compete in the annual event and vie for one of four awards - Rookie Vendor of the Year, Best Dessert, People’s Taste and the coveted Vendy Cup, awarded to the best food truck as judged on by a celebrity panel.

“It’s like the Oscars of food for the real New York,” Batali has said.

The Vendys originated in the Big Apple in 2006 as a fundraiser for the Street Vendor Project of the Urban Justice Center. The competition has since blossomed into a yearly highlight for hundreds of food vendors and connoisseurs up-and-down the Eastern Seaboard. More than 1,000 people bought tickets to last year’s event on Governors Island and enjoyed live music and unlimited food from 18 different vendors. Proceeds from the sale of each ticket (ranging from $80 to $220) went to the Street Vendor Project, earmarked directly to assist immigrant vendors with legal representation and advocacy efforts.

 “There really is a unique atmosphere, almost like you are at a carnival,” said Yolanda Simmons, a hot dog cart vendor based in Atlantic City who has attended the Vendys. “I like seeing what different people are doing, the different types of food and styles. Being in the business, it also gives me a chance to see new things that I may be able to improve upon with my cart.”

Simmons witnesses the day-to-day tribulations of running a sidewalk business firsthand, so she also appreciates the newfound fanfare of her craft.

“I’m glad people enjoy the trucks because it wasn’t always like that,” Simmons said. “We weren’t celebrated. People used to think we were a nuisance, but that’s not the case anymore. We now have our own day.”

Thanks to a partnership between the Street Vendor Project and Philly Homegrown, an initiative of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, three food trucks from Philadelphia were invited to the Vendy Awards last year. The trio of trucks marked the first time vendors from outside New York City participated in the competition.

“It was a neat experience to show everyone what we could do,” said Tom McCusker, owner and operator of Honest Tom’s Taco Shop, one of the three food trucks invited to the competition. “They hauled the trucks up on two flatbeds. It was interesting to see the [best] food trucks of New York City all in one place, and Governors Island was beautiful.”

Along with Honest Tom’s Taco Shop, Denise’s Soul Food and Birchrun on a Roll represented Philadelphia in the contest.

“I think food trucks in Philadelphia are really starting to boom,” McCusker said. “From what people come and tell me, there should be another 20 or 30 trucks opening this year of all different types of foods.”

The idea of a food truck competition is catching on elsewhere as well. Los Angeles held its first Vendy Awards last year and had more than 1,000 food trucks nominated for consideration.

Philadelphia, too, will get involved with the Vendy circuit later this year when the city hosts its own food truck cook-off. Details of when and where remain elusive, but the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation is committed to hosting the competition sometime in late 2011.

“Philadelphia is a natural choice for a Vendy Awards and other celebratory gatherings that shine a light on Philly’s homegrown and diverse food cultures,” GPTMC President and CEO Meryl Levitz said. “Residents and visitors alike are eating their way through the Philadelphia region like never before.”

Patrick can be reached at pgordon@temple.edu