The greatest day in mobile food vending is back. On September 12, the Vendy Awards will take place on Governor’s Island honoring the greatest in New York’s food vending community. Tickets are still available for purchase here.
Every year in addition to the usual category, the Vendys give us something a little special. This year, they’re quenching your thirst with a category dedicated to the best drinks on the street. Here are the five nominees:
Best Street Drinks:
Coco & Co.
It’s been hot these last few days and I crave a creamy, sweet, refreshing drink. Nothing’s more appropriate and thirst quenching than coconuts. Friends Luke and Yair ride decorative tiki bikes around Brooklyn and Manhattan offering up fresh coconuts and smoothies. Coco & Co. will make you forget what island you are on!
Tea and Milk
Most bubble teas are made from powders loaded with sugar and other chemicals. Not Tea and Milk. All their drinks are brewed to order from actual leaves. At their Astoria location or at the LIC Flea, you can customize your drink with mix-in’s like fresh cream, tapioca pearls, chia seeds, or aloe vera.
Best Juice Uptown
Ever died dreaming? That’s the English translation of morir soñando, the classic Dominican refreshment. The creamsicle-esque drink is made with orange juice, cane sugar, and condensed milk. It’s also the signature drink of Hector Palaguachi who operates Best Juice Uptown in Washington Heights. He also offers blends of fruit and vegetable juices.
Renegade Lemonade
Renegade Lemonade is taking a pretty traditional concept and re-inventing it. Even if you’ve purchased lemonade from a stand on the streets, you’ve never had such interesting and seasonal flavors like Watermelon Jalapeño or Pear Chai. Megan Bailey uses real fruits and herbs to enhance her unique lemonade stand.
Catalina’s Champurrado
Catalina Soriano Salas vends from a little cart under the 191st Street subway line. There, she sells tacos, tamales, and traditional Mexican drinks to the Washington Heights community. Here two most popular drinks are arroz con leche (a slightly sweet, breakfast drink made with rice) and champurrado (a warm chocolate drink thickened with masa de maíz). You can also find her family members helping out and her husband runs their nearby juice cart as well.
