Vancouver Street Food Vendors

Yesterday the Sun reported that City Hall is poised to expand Vancouver’s street food menu by launching a pilot project this summer that will allow mobile kitchens on wheels to operate alongside our existing hotdog and chestnut carts.

Photo credit: stevelyon on Flickr

The move will likely expand the menu available on city sidewalks from pre-cooked packaged foods such as hotdogs to more freshly prepared fare. The city soon will issue a call for expressions of interest seeking vendors who want to offer streetside food service, according to the acting manager of streets administration…

…Vending trucks are governed by national standards, the same standards that apply to mobile catering, according to health protection manager Angelo Kouris of Vancouver Coastal Health. [Vancouver Sun]

I posted this link on Twitter and received the following responses from my readers:

Having spent this past week in New York I can say that there sure is no shortage of roadside munchies here; from falafel and warm pretzels to the flame-grilled shish kabob and soft-serve ice cream trucks.

In downtown Vancouver we have lineups out the door at two types of places: Babylon Cafe (with shawarma, gyros, falafel etc.) and anywhere that serves ramen.

Photo credit: Barnaby (left) / anitasarkeesian (right)

I’m expecting to see those types of foods take to the streets or anything fusion given the success of Japadog. The pilot project will launch in July.

Update August 2010 With the project now launched, the following is a map of the 17 vendor locations around Vancouver.

East Side of 200 Howe St – 100 metres North of W Cordova St
Wong, To Choi – Chinese Dim Sum

South Side of 400 W Georgia St – 12 metres East of Richards St
Lee, Yong Sook – Korean food with meat and vegetarian options

North Side of 700 W Cordova St – 14 metres East of Howe St
Revuelta Cue, Arturo – Burritos, whole wheat, rice, beans, sauces, fillings

East Side of 700 Homer St – 20 metres South of W Georgia St
Yong, Ming Cheak – chicken salad with lettuce, tomato. Fruit cup with melon, kiwi and mixed fruit.

East Side of 700 Hornby St – 22 metres South of W Georgia St
Kaisaris, Michael – Southern BBQ, Rice, Veggies

South Side of 700 W Georgia St – 20 metres West of Granville St
Li, Hongyu – Traditional Chinese and Japanese Cuisine

South Side of 900 W Hastings St – 24 metres East of Burrard St
Fang, Emily – Skewers of beef and pork

West Side of 1100 Burrard St – 28 metres South of Helmcken St
Samaei Motlag, Babak – Greek Donair

West Side of 1100 Burrard St – 25 metres North of Davie St
Yeo, Allan – Modern Satay Barbeque

South Side of 2000 Beach Av – 30 metres West of Chilco St
Zhao, Mei Liing – Fresh squeezed Lemonade

East Side of 600 Granville St – 50 metres North of W Georgia St
Ip, Derek – Fresh Bakery

West Side of 600 Granville St – 95 metres North of W Georgia St
Rodgers, Katie – Healthy meals & snacks, roll ups, sandwiches

East Side of 6400 Cambie St – 20 metres North of W 49th Ave
Yien, Alan – speciality noodles

East Side of 1300 Main St – 12 metres North of Terminal Ave
St. Denis, Jean Francois – Falafel

West Side of 1100 Station St, or West Side of 400 Burrard St
Morra, Giorgio – Authentic Italian stone ground pizza

West Side of 1200-1300 Arbutus St, or North Side of 1000 W Georgia St
Duprey, David – Fresh & frozen fruits, chocolate dipped fruits

West Side of 1400 NW Marine Dr, or East Side of 800 Hornby St
Kosmowski, Roman – Central European foods from Poland, Russia, using local organic products, borscht, schnitzel, kosher

I’ve been reading some mixed reviews of the street vendor pilot program as Scout Magazine provides plenty of food for thought.