Immigrating to the United States to taste American cuisine:
1. King of Falafel & Shawarma
Although halal food trucks offering salad sandwiches, Turkish kebabs, and rice are ubiquitous in New York City, the establishment named King of Falafel & Shawarma still stands out. During peak lunch hours, it is often bustling with customers. This shop has been operating in Astoria for over a decade, primarily serving fast food with flavors from West Asia and the Middle East. The food truck features fragrant fried lamb and chicken, which can be paired with Indian basmati rice and tahini or spicy sauce. In 2010, this shop also won the Best Marketing Award for Street Food in New York City.
Address: 53rd Street and Park Avenue, New York
2. Milk Truck
The shiny yellow milk truck is a popular lunch spot for many locals. Every day, enthusiastic servers continuously offer various classic American snacks, such as macaroni and cheese and turkey chili. Of course, the most popular item is the grilled cheese sandwich. Generally, customers have three pairing options: classic plain, with onions or mustard, or with cheese and apple. Although Bessie does not have a fixed location, loyal fans can still track it down online.
Location: Varies
3. Red Hook Lobster Pound food truck
Since the arrival of Big Red, New Yorkers no longer have to worry about finding authentic New England lobster rolls; they just need to find this lobster shack on the street to indulge. The food here features Maine-style served cold with mayonnaise, and Connecticut-style served hot with butter and lemon. Regardless of the style, a quarter pound of fresh Maine lobster is essential.
Although the price of this snack at the food truck is not cheap (about $16 per lobster roll), it still attracts a large number of customers daily. It is said that Big Red can sell 300 to 400 lobster rolls every two hours. After all, the temptation of delicious lobster is hard to resist.
Location: Varies
4. Lumpia Shack
Although Lumpia Shack has recently upgraded to a restaurant, its previous stall at the Brooklyn food market Smorgasburg remains intact. Every Sunday starting at 11 AM, people line up in the narrow alley. Various flavors of fried spring rolls, crispy spring rolls, and Filipino spring rolls are available here. The ingredients for the spring rolls include locally sourced tender pork, roasted duck, and truffle mushrooms. Each spring roll is handmade and then fried in hot oil.
Unlike ordinary street snacks, Lumpia Shack's offerings can be considered restaurant-quality: not only are they beautifully plated, but they also come with a special sauce, garnished with bean sprouts, and a small dish of vegetables.
Address: Corner of Kent Avenue and Wythe Avenue, Brooklyn (Smorgasburg Market)
5. Dirty Water Dogs
In Manhattan, you can find blue and yellow striped umbrellas with the Sabrett logo almost every block. Here, you can find New York's most iconic street snack—"dirty water" hot dogs.
"Dirty water" hot dogs typically place a hot sausage in a bun softened by water, then optionally add various condiments and toppings. Although it may not look artisanal, it is a very popular snack in New York.
6. Solber Pupusas
Solber was founded 15 years ago by the couple Rafael and Reyna, with the name Solber being a portmanteau of their last names. Although it is a small mobile stall, it sells over 600 Salvadoran (from Central America) pupusas daily.
The shop mainly offers Mexican corn cakes wrapped in banana leaves, served with cabbage salad, which is very popular locally.
Address: Corner of Lafayette Avenue and Vanderbilt Avenue, Brooklyn Flea Market
7. Calexico
Mexican cuisine became popular in New York thanks to Calexico. In 2006, the first Mexican taco truck appeared in Manhattan's SoHo, and since then, the Mexican taco truck trend has slowly developed, leading to the rows of food trucks and restaurants seen on the streets today.
The classic Mexican tacos in SoHo remain popular, featuring traditional Mexican corn tortillas filled with carefully prepared Mexican pork, accompanied by cheese, oats, green peas, and various other toppings.
Address: Prince Street and Wooster Street
8. Bolivian Llama Party
At the Smorgasburg food market in Brooklyn, traditional Bolivian snacks are also frequently seen. In Bolivian breakfasts, Saltenas are the most authentic main dish, with meat-filled dumplings mixed with local vegetables from Salta (a city in Argentina), along with other ingredients such as beef, chicken, olives, eggs, potatoes, onions, beans, and radishes.
Address: Corner of Kent Avenue and Wythe Avenue, Brooklyn (Smorgasburg Market)