We hopped in line at Itizy's for a "palate cleanser" (Ian's words) of rosemary lemon ice cream. This turned out to be more of a small meal. We loved the delicious and refreshing summery flavor. We also were drawn in by the "ice cream with a passion" message. For every five scoops they sell, they donate a meal to a child in need via the World Food Program.
Next up was dinner. After scoping out all our options, Ian and I split up to cover more ground. I hopped in line for empanadas at Nuchas, while Ian decided to pick up food with a more Asian flair at Momos & Buns.
I was impressed with Nuchas. The truck was well designed and efficient, and I loved their solution to identifying the different flavors: a letter stamp in the corner of each empanada. The fancy video monitor menus and gleaming ovens didn't hurt either.
When Ian and I finally both made it through the lengthy lines, we met up to share our spoils. Unfortunately, Momos & Buns had sold out of buns, so we ended up with just momos (dumplings) over rice. We swapped bites while huddled over our warm food in a tiny square of sunshine. (May might be springtime, but it's still chilly in New England.)
Overall, we were impressed with the NYC food trucks: great design and great food. But we're also glad we live in Boston. I'm sure we're biased, but we're big fans of our city's food trucks, especially Bon Me, la Tour Eiffel, and my first food truck love Roxy's Grilled Cheese. Long live the green muenster.
Boston food truck Pennypackers won Best of the Food Truck Throwdown, la Tour Eiffel won Best of Maker's Mark and Roxy's Grilled Cheese won the Food Truck Fans Favorite, while Nuchas took home the Best of NY award. And food truck fans, have you ever thought about the politics behind mobile food vending? New York food trucks face plenty of bureaucratic challenges, while Boston's food truck initiative has paved the way for a growing food truck culture. Thankfully, the NYC Food Truck Association is working to make life easier for food trucks. Best of luck to them!