Blockwatch, “Food Trucks Feast and Fashion

FeastandFashion
Food trucks have multiplied—as have the fashionable foodies waiting in
line to place their orders. Here’s a look at the best spots to score a
tasty snack…and people-watch while you wait.
By Kirsten Fleming Photography by Elizabeth Weinberg
Mandy Brooks,
entertainment
director at SoHo
and TriBeCa
Grand hotels
(left), wears a
dress by Mandy
Coon and MAC
lipstick in Lady
Danger.
My Nguyen,
26, a film and
TV production
coordinator (left),
makes curly fries
from the Munchie
Mobile look stylish
with her on-trend
cut-out dress from
Urban Outfitters.
“My friend is a
teacher at Nick
Arrojo’s studio.
She cuts my
hair,” says juice
enthusiast Sara
Idacavage, 25, of
her smart pixie.
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Letty Lawrence,
22, PR assistant at
Rent the Runway,
accessorizes
her Opening
Ceremony dress
with lemonade
from the Green
Pirate juice truck.
In a printed blouse
from Zara and
toting a navy
Michael Kors bag,
TV producer Stacy
St. Onge, 29, waits
patiently for her
lunch from Kimchi
Taco.
LentSpace,
Canal Street and
6th Avenue
Eric Axelrod, 26,
offers service
with a smile at
Kimchi Taco,
where he works.
Rent the Runway
accessories
buyer Jane
Baecher, 26
(below, left),
beats the heat
with a smart
updo and looks
cool in a chunky
Kate Spade
necklace.
Arielle Silverman,
22, Rent the Runway’s marketing
coordinator,
brightens up the
scene in a Peter
Som dress and
glitzy jewels from
Kenneth Jay Lane
and Oscar de la
Renta.
Creative firms have flocked
to Hudson Square, an area
that kisses the Holland
Tunnel and joins SoHo
and TriBeCa. When lunch
options lagged, the NYC
Food Truck Association
teamed up with LentSpace,
a lot turned outdoor cultural
area, to create a rotating cast
of mobile cuisine options.
“Igoforthefalafeltruck
withtheamazinggingerlemonade…RickshawDumpling
isdelicious,too,”saysMandy
Brooks,entertainmentdirectoratSoHoandTriBeCa
Grandhotels.
OnarecentThursday,
Brooksswitcheditupwith
adishfromKimchiTaco.
Meanwhile,hordesofother
hungrycreativetypescrowdedthePalenqueColombian
foodtruckasthreestylish
girlswhoworkatonline
fashioncompanyRentthe
Runwaygrabbedlemonades
fromtheGreenPirate.
“They circulate menus
in our office to let us know
which trucks are around,”
says Rent the Runway accessories buyer Jane Baecher
between sips of her summer
elixir.
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Stunning
Argentine
art director
Sofia Sanchez
Barrenechea, 27
(right), wears a
Gryphon dress
while waiting at
the Takumi taco
stand.
Ralph Lauren’s
Christine Ang, who
paired her printed
dress with a J. Crew
military jacket,
waits in line at Big
D’s Grub, which
serves items such
as yucca fries and
pork-and-chive
dumplings. “My
style is classic
chic with an urban
twist,” says the
25-year-old.
StarrettLehigh
Building,
601 W. 26th St.
between 11th and
12th avenues
“I have a lot of
vintage bolo ties
that I wear as
necklaces,” says
gallerist Abbey
Golden, 26,
(left), showing
off her lunch of
yellowtail tacos
with jalapeno,
jicama and
green apple from
Takumi.
In a crocheted
statement collar
on top of her
black dress,
Korean model
Miin Lee (right)
peruses the
menu at Big D’s.
Indian-born
handbag
designer Malini
Murjani skirts
past Big D’s
can’t-miss-it
yellow truck
clutching one
of her own
creations.
Fashion advertiser
M.J. Smith, 32,
sports a bold ’do on
his break (left).
“I love adding pops
of color,” says
production artist
Cynthia Medranda,
23, cradling her
weekly fix of
Gianduja ice cream
from Van Leeuwen.
On the outskirts of Chelsea,
a 19-story highrise is using
remnants of its past to serve
up the future of food. Once a
thriving manufacturing hub,
the Starrett-Lehigh building
houses fashion companies
like Tommy Hilfiger and
Club Monaco. Now vendors
use its old freight elevators
to ferry carts up to common
spaces, where they serve
workers starved of nearby
lunching options.
“It’s like a food desert over
there,” says David Weber,
head of the NYC Food Truck
Association and owner of
Rickshaw Dumpling. He
worked with the building’s
progressive management to
bring in a selection of food
trucks, from Van Leeuwen
ice cream to the brand-new
Japanese Takumi Taco. Additional savory trucks like
Eddie’s Pizza and Gorilla
Cheese park outside on a
rotating schedule.
The system gets a thumbsup from gallery girl Abbey
Golden, 26, who was waiting
for a yellowtail taco. “It is
really exciting every time
you see a new truck in the
elevator,” she says.
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