Some of the best parts of summer are the long stretches of time you can spend outside without so much as a single shiver. Got some work to catch up on? WFP = Working From Park. Trying to get in shape? The world is your gym. Need to sweat out your hangover? Literally open your door.
See? Summer is so useful. So useful that not even your body’s hunger signals need to send you inside. New York is bursting with carts and trucks and wagons crammed with some of the best food in the city.
Take a scroll to get the scoop (heh) on all our favorite calorie vehicles.
If you want fried Chinese food…
Where to find it: In Midtown. Usually around 112 W 46th St.!
If the owners look familiar, that’s probably because Amelia accosted them while trying to figure out why they weren’t at work in the middle of the day. Amelia recommends The Beijing Original, and is amazed that The Flying Pig gets its meat from Albanese Meats, a butcher shop that has been part of lower Manhattan for over a century.
If you want a fancy grilled cheese…
Where to find it: Always moving around, visit their website and click “Locations” for daily updates!
Jasmin used to get a grilled cheese every Friday as an end-of-the-week treat. She also promises that if you take a chance on the chickpea salad, you will not be disappointed.
If you want a classic soft-serve…
Where to find it: 272 Bleecker St. will do. But honestly these babies are everywhere.
NOSTALGIA! Leandra can often be found with a cone of vanilla ice cream and rainbow sprinkles in hand (or a SpongeBob bar if it’s a special occasion), and loves that these original food trucks have outlived so many food fads.
If you want a responsible taco…
Where to find it: The Highline at 88 10th Ave.
All the produce used is locally-sourced and the meat is antibiotic and hormone-free. Patty especially loves the Nachos el Güero.
If you want classic halal food…
Where to find it: 53rd and 6th Ave.
Verena finds Midtown a barren wasteland for lunch food and she loves The Halal Guys because they’ve been making delicious and hearty meals from a cart for years — we’re talking 20-plus — before food trucks were even a thing. The gyro and falafel are the best.
If you want adventurous ice cream…
Timon and Pumbaa have nothing on us. What worries did you cast away over the weekend? #WeKeepItReal
A photo posted by COOLHAUS (@coolhaus) on
Where to find it: Various locations throughout New York but often 5th Ave! Check here for daily updates.
The flavor combo possibilities, such as sea salt avocado ice cream inside a lemon rosemary olive oil cookie, are as endless as they are adventurous. Harling suggests that you arrive hungry and also check out the vegan cinnamon cookie dough ice cream inside a chocolate chip cookie.
If you want a spin on Korean food…
Where to find it: All around. Check here for daily updates!
Verena thinks variety is the spice of life and the korilla truck gives her the choice of a Korean rice bowl, Korean-meets-Mexican burrito and approximately 89,237,429 unexpected toppings.
If you want artisanal ice cream…
Where to find it: Location changes daily (but based in Brooklyn); visit the Beatnik Parlor Instagram @beatnikparlor for location updates!
Besides serving up delicious ice cream sandwiches, funky black cones and creamsicles, this delicious food truck is courtesy of MR Model Megan and her two friends, who moved from Sacramento to Brooklyn to follow their dream of bringing beat-era ice cream to NYC.
If you want super authentic Mexican food…
Where to find it: Williamsburg, 154 N 7th Street.
Haley once stopped here randomly while in desperate need of some sustenance and spent the whole next day thinking about it, in a romantic sense. The Al Pastor taco will leave you sleepless in Seattle but in New York.
Photographed by Kayla Tanenbaum and Krista Anna Lewis.
