Take a hearty helping of oxtail stew, add a dash of yogurt sauce and some pork-and-pineapple tacos, throw in a few hundred foodies and a handful of celebrity judges, and what do you get? The Vendy Awards, an annual Iron Chef-style cook-off among purveyors of New York City's best street eats.
Though the Vendys have been one of the city's most popular food events since their 2005 launch, the contest was actually conceived as a way to help local sidewalk vendors. "It was the day after the Grammys, and we'd been thinking of doing a fundraiser anyway," explains Sean Basinski, founder and director of the Street Vendor Project, an advocacy group representing New York's 10,000-plus pushcart peddlers. "Now it seems like everyone I talk to knows about the Vendys, even if they don't know us or the work we do."
Success has been a boon and a bane. The Vendys have mushroomed from a party planned by Basinski (a lawyer and former street-food vendor himself) and "a couple of friends" to a phenomenon that draws international media coverage. In the process, he has gained both a steady revenue stream and several organizational headaches, chief among them the ever-changing venue ("We'd love to find a permanent location"). Then there's the complex committee structure, adopted last year, whereby the Vendys are organized by a group of 20 to 25 volunteers, each responsible for a different area, from sponsorship to music to logistics to judges.
Food, Glorious Food
Here's how the Vendys work: First, thousands of New Yorkers submit nominations to the Street Vendor Project for the city's best food vendors; given New York's ethnic diversity and the fact that vendors tend to be immigrants, cuisines range from Caribbean to Middle Eastern to Asian, with nary a dirty-water dog or soft pretzel represented. Basinski and others tally the five most nominated, who set up their carts at the location (this year, a state park in Brooklyn) and go mano a mano whipping up the best dishes of their native lands.
After attendees have stuffed themselves silly for five hours, the winner is chosen by a panel of judgesa mix of local celebrities, foodies, and the odd politicianwho present him or her with the Silver Vendy Cup. "It doesn't matter who wins. It's just a fun competition," says Basinski, though he admits that winners tend to expand their businesses as a result.
Bon Appetit
Basinski begins planning nine months out and works his way up to 12-hour workdays the week before the event. "In a way, this overshadows the rest of our work," he says. "For instance, I'm supposed to be getting out court papers, yet here I am taking calls about the Vendys."
But he doesn't regret it. "People really appreciate that this is a grassroots event organized by local volunteers. You could make the case that the public only associates our organization with the Vendys now, but we've built a funding source and improved the image of vendors, so we've been very successful."
Originally published July 1, 2008
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