Red Hook Food: The Little Street Vendors That Could

June 8, 2009 11:37 am

Red Hook Food: The Little Street Vendors That Could

I am aware that by posting this, I am entering into a New York City obsession that has been blogged into the ground. The beloved Red Hook Vendors are so saturated by foodie web-scene coverage that my writing about them will undoubtedly cause even marginal followers of the NYC food world to roll their eyes. Thankfully, Behind the Burner is not a New York food blog and I'm hoping that some of you in other (less relentlessly competitive and easily bored) parts of the country will be interested to hear about one of the most satisfying eating experiences that I have enjoyed in awhile.

First, some background information: the Red Hook Vendors scene began over three decades ago when Latin American immigrants started preparing and selling the cuisine of their home countries for people watching soccer games at the Red Hook ball fields. Since then, the vendors have won the hearts and stomachs of New Yorkers (David Byrne and Chuck Schumer among them) with a pupusa, ceviche, elotes and, of course, tacos.

Over the years, they morphed from one of NY's best kept secrets to one of its worst. The vendors garnered so many enthusiasts, that they started attracting some negative attention as well; last year the New York City Parks Department stopped issuing permits and forced them into a process of open bidding despite their decades-long presence in Red Hook.

The Parks Department's decision incited the interest of the Health Department who stepped up their inspection process. The city was on the verge of shutting the entire operation down (the people who staff the health department clearly started their careers as middle school hall monitors), when public enragement (led by Chuck) caused them to backpedal.

To everyone's relief, they're back, although in compromised form. In order to return for the season, they had to comply with the city's tight regulations, racking up thousands of dollars in debt for refitting their trucks. The financial burden was so heavy that some vendors couldn't return at all. Others claim that it will take years to remake the money they've lost. The situation has bloomed into (one of the many) conversations about the unintended evils of gentrification and the city's nanny-state politics. But, I just want to talk about tacos.

I never tried the vendors at their peak, a decision I regret now. But even after surviving a run-in with the city, their food is phenomenal. On Saturday, two friends and I piled into my mother's car and drove to the Red Hook ball fields. Considering my skills behind the wheel, I could probably up the drama factor a little and say that I risked all of our lives for food without an unreasonable amount of exaggeration.

After the stress of feeling like I was going to kill myself and two good friends in a fiery car wreck, I was really hungry. Sheila, a friend from Slow Food USA and a gastronomista extraordinaire, had tried the pupusas the previous weekend at Brooklyn Flea and highly recommended them. So while she waited in line for the Salvadoran a pupusa plate, my friend Annie sourced out vegetarian tacos slathered in beans, cheese and salsa. On a leap of faith, I found a cart peddling ceviche and parked myself behind two soccer players.

Having only eaten the bastardized ceviche they sell at uppity fusion restaurants, I was surprised by the simplicity of the street food version. After ordering, the teenage girl working the cart served each soccer player a plastic Tupperware filled with milky, cilantro flecked liquid and chunks of mixed seafood. Both of them squirted the contents of their containers with lemon juice and hot sauce. Not knowing protocol, I followed suit and brought my ceviche to our picnic table unsure of what to expect.

If you have never had the stuffed corn tortilla called a pupusa, do so at the next opportunity. They're really, really good. I chose one filled with little spicy flowers called loroco and another with chicken and hot peppers. The flowers were delicate and tasted faintly of arugula, while the braised chicken practically melted into the gooey sheets of white cheese and chunks of pepper that accompanied it. Both a pupusas were served with a shockingly pink condiment of tart pickled cabbage and smoky tomato salsa.

We devoured everything on our plates then timidly dug our forks into the ceviche. Wholly unlike the tangy sushi surrogates they serve at restaurants like Sushi Samba, the seafood in our ceviche was cooked to a pleasantly toothsome texture by the acidity of the lime. Remarkably, nothing had the faintest fishy flavor and not even the squid was rubbery.

After polishing off a container of fried plantains with sour cream, I regretted not being able to try the fried pork skin or the famous elotes, ears of grilled corn drenched in mayo, cheese and chili pepper. But, I guess this means I'll have to go back again (preferably with beer in brown paper bags and no pressure to drive).

For those of you who have not read (or blogged) extensively about the Red Hook Vendors, Serious Eats has a comprehensive list of things that first timers should expect when visiting the carts. Despite the hardship that the vendors have had to overcome this year, things are starting to look up. Gothamist reports that some of the vendors will be part of a "foodie tent" at Coney Island's Dreamland this summer. So forgive me if I've brought the redundancy of blogging about Red Hook to a new level, but it was my first time. Okay? And, I was excited about it, damn it. On a final note, keep your eyes peeled for our managing editor and Californian taco enthusiast Mona Buehler's take on the Red Hook phenomenon sometime in the upcoming weeks...

—Cecilia Estreich

Red Hook Park & Ball Fields
Court Street at Bay Street
Brooklyn, NY 11231