[ozonemania]

Vancouver Finally Decides to Allow Street Food and Taco Trucks!

Posted by Kat Braybrooke / May 28, 2010

News outlets are all atwitter because it looks like Japadog's about to get some (much needed) culinary competition of the street variety. The City has announced that it's doing a summer pilot project to give mobile kitchens, ala Portland, the chance to sell food on city sidewalks. God, yes!

As someone who grew up in the U.S., I can say with full seriousness that there truly is nothing quite as satisfying as a greasy, hot plate of random ethnic food served up dirty and fast from an impolite vendor who lives out of the back of her truck. I was actually in Portland this past weekend and got a delictable dish called "Drunken Noodles" from a Thai street vendor at 4am. I can't even tell you how amazing that was. Our progressive City Council is working at this very moment on a big call-out for vendors who are interested in offering "streetside food service".

With Vancouver's active weekend clubbing (and underground music) scenes, and a burgeoning multitude of upper middle class students who throng together in drunken gangs late at night looking to waste their cash, the pilot is pretty much guaranteed to be successful, in my opinion.

Here's hoping that street food is as well-received by Vancouverites as it was by those in Portland, L.A., Austin, New York and other cities that have thriving street food cultures. There's just something about international food out of tiny, bright trucks that really adds to a city's sense of local culture and flavour.

I'm also hoping that it doesn't go the way of Toronto and its horrifically batched and over-regulated 'A La Cart' street vendor initiative.

Street food I would pay good money (and by that, I mean $5 a dish) to see ASAP? First on my list would obviously be Mexican -- authentic street tacos give me a great amount of joy. Next, Indian. Last, Caribbean. Why not?

Japadog, watch your back.

What street food do YOU want to see on Vancouver's sidewalks? Tell me in the comments because I'm hungry!

http://www.beyondrobson.com/food/2010/05...eet_food_and_taco_trucks/#comment-655493

A 'news item' from Beyond Robson. So we want to emulate Portland's foodie scene. Looking forward to seeing this happen. From what I've read (perhaps here on this site), bricks-and-mortar eateries are not very happy about this, since they might steal customers away from them without the overhead and costs that they have to go through.

Does anyone know where to find more info about this pilot project?