Free the Street Vendors
Hot dog vendor at Spadina and Queen. Photo by Kevin Steele
Toronto is finally getting the street food it deserves. After suffering under years of legislation that prohibited nearly everything but precooked sausages from being sold on the streets, vendors will now be able to serve food from hundreds of culinary traditions.
There’s just one problem: rather than embracing liberalized street food and all of its potential, City Hall is taking an overly bureaucratic approach. Just eight street vendors, out of a total of 19 that applied, will participate in a pilot project that will see Afghan chapli kebabs in Nathan Phillips Square, Ethiopian injera at Roundhouse Park and jerk chicken at Yonge and St. Clair, to name a few delicacies that have been specially chosen for their “nutritional value” and representation of Toronto’s ethnic makeup. Every aspect of the vendors’ operations will be tightly controlled: each one must use a custom-designed food cart (which range in price from $21,000 to $28,000) and they can’t deviate from their designated location.
City officials are concerned about food safety, naturally enough, but they’re also fussy about the nutritional value of what street vendors dish up, having gone so far as to pass a bylaw last December to ensure that street food is not only more “culturally diverse,” but “wholesome and nutritious.” It seems they want to discourage competition among vendors, too, since they’ve gone to great lengths to designate a handful of disparate locations at which street food can be sold under the new program.
It’s a remarkably heavy-handed approach, one at odds with the world’s great street food traditions, which are grounded in the ability to adapt quickly and flexibly to customer demand. Think of something like the now-famous Kogi taco truck in Los Angeles, which serves up Korean-inspired tacos from a roving truck whose location is announced only by Twitter and word-of-mouth. It’s innovative, delicious and exactly what people want — but it would be impossible in Toronto, where food vendors aren’t allowed to move around.
People less cynical than me can consider Toronto’s new approach a step towards street food freedom. But it’s an awfully small step. Even if this pilot project works out, what will dissuade city officials from micromanaging every future street food venture?
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Tags: Street Food, Streetlife, Toronto
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Mia says:
A very even tempered post.
With this much control I am not optimistic that the project will see any success. The people pushing for the suffocating legislation just don’t get it and it’s a damn shame. Our stomachs suffer for their ignorance.
Imagine if there was street food under all those condos on the water? Imagine if there were carts under the Gardiner?
April 14th, 2009 at 12:18 am
Gobsmacked says:
How interesting. Love the site and the cities of focus especially with a food category!
I haven’t been to Tronno for several years but when I was there the only food cart I saw was in Nathan Phillips Square and it was selling “Back Bacon” Sandwiches which I thought was an unfortunate name and not something I’d be interested in. Especially so having since gone meatless (and now even vegan). But I notice in the picture above there’s a veggie dog available at the photogenic cart (I didn’t like ‘em in animal form so not keen on them even in healthy meat-free versions but in a pinch I’d not go hungry, eh?). I notice as well a guy in jeans. I swear I was the only one wearing denim during my time in the city (an entire lovely summer). I also wore cowboy boots as I didn’t really care if I fit in (but I must have as I was constantly being stopped for directions even by locals).
Also big when I was there was the crackdown on “Dirty Dining” which I’d also thought was rather funny (mostly because I was staying with a family so needed few meals out — and in one I did have I found a big fingernail in the General Tso Chicken). Amusing in part as the authorities seemed to believe their crackdown was innovative and original where we’d been doing it for as long as I could remember in Oregon. All front doors (or nearby windows) would be (and still are) adorned with the stickers of health department approval (or disapproval).
Anyway, in Portland there’s been an explosion of wonderful and amazing food carts over the years. Great long rows of them set up on the edges of parking lots, with apparently the biggest limitations being the ability of the electrical connections to power them all sufficiently at mealtime rushes.
Some have permanent locations while others go place to place such as farmers markets or special events as in music fests or gatherings (even catering), though being mobile does require advance planning and permitting for each stop.
The regular restaurants were quite hostile at first (years ago) but it actually improved all aspects of the dining experience here from service to ambience to the ingredients which are now extremely fresh, often organic and mostly local (very discerning consumers in the area) and it’s pretty much sacrilegious to not have at least one awesome vegan option while many carts are all vegetarian with lots of vegan options (others provide a discount to those who leave off the spendy cheese, sour cream and such but there is at least one all vegan taco truck).
See it used to be difficult to find vegan food at all let alone something decent. Now it’s accessible to all including those who don’t follow the lifestyle (anyone can eat vegan) with the additional benefits that vegan food is often quite handy for those with allergies (especially dairy/eggs) and/or gluten intolerance (not always on that front but amazingly often) plus an easy step (usually) in the healthy direction for those minding their weight or on doctor’s orders. In fact, corporate fast food outlets where the only veggie is usually in fry form (and then they tell us they’d offer better if we actually bought it but we don’t, they say, making it all our fault…) are finding it difficult to stay open as the people have found better and healthier choices. The power of the option as well as embracing the unique and rejecting world-wide chain homogenization.
http://stumptownvegans.com/?s=Cart
http://foodcartsportland.com/category/cuisine/vegan-options-cuisine/
Part of the success is there are several web sites that report on the availability of choices as well as quality of offerings. If a cart is good (especially if it’s unique) it quickly gets noticed and written about so even those who don’t read up are able to follow the crowd. This means, especially with the carts so close together that the food better be good or it will be devoid of lines while others are hopping.
Recently what was once a mostly lunchtime phenomena has become a late night pursuit with one lot having several diverse carts (vegan poutine!) that don’t even open till the evening and go until after the bars close down.
And we just celebrated the second annual Food Cart Festival (“Eat Mobile”). This year there were awards for the best carts.
http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=%22Eat%20Mobile%22&w=all
So now there’s a food cart scene and a culture and a following and a community; all of which are bringing oodles of press attention.
http://foodcartsportland.com/2009/06/11/hot-heapings-of-cart-news/
Hope Toronto is eventually able to tap into the PDX experiences to enjoy the benefits of carting (diversity, agility, fostering of businesses, and so much more — I mean, we have well loved and successful New Jersey style Italian street food from one cart… yes with vegan choices; what are the chances a brick & mortar adventure would open under that premise?). Even as inexpensive and flexible as carts can be the health inspection process and requirements are the same so these are very tidy and clean (if cramped) with stringent safety rules for temperatures and procedures (put in place long ago). But it seems officials work for success rather than hinderance.
Perhaps Portland’s food fortunes can be the ultimate persuasion for stodgy city officials in the Jetsons-like offices. As long as there’s no Bare-Naked Food Carts (or Eminems) in the square, eh? :D
June 12th, 2009 at 4:29 pm
Christopher DeWolf says:
Nice to hear from you. I’m especially interested by the blogs that track street food. Thanks for the links!
June 12th, 2009 at 9:04 pm