228844 Mon Dec 05 14:35:16 -0800 2005 10 18 Manhattan 0 1215664 The family and I are making the annual pilgrimage to NYC next week, and are looking to keep expenses to a minimum this time around. We are seeking info on the best street carts of all types -- our 6-year-old is a very adventurous eater (BabyChow!), so we can go beyond your basic hotdog. Midtown, Rockefeller Ctr, Central Park and anywhere around the department store windows would be great. Thanks! Pam Mon Dec 05 14:35:16 -0800 2005 0 PamR 1 1215668 if you are going to be in midtown, the Daisy May's cart on 50th & 6th has great chili and as well as some other sandwiches. big variety of carts on that corner as well. Mon Dec 05 14:46:58 -0800 2005 1215664 0 CDB 1 1215684 Keep in mind most of the carts are in operation just on weekdays. In the Rock Center area, I suggest Kwick Meal for chicken over rice, SW Corner of 45th & 6th, Miriam's Falafels, falafel, SW Corner of 46th & 6th. Hallo Berlin, everything is good, NW corner of 54th & 5th. Mon Dec 05 15:34:57 -0800 2005 1215664 0 Homer J 2 1215693 Agreed on all these, but at Kwik Meal I'd get lamb on rice. If you like spicy food, make sure to ask for extra green hot sauce. Its fantastic and very spicy. They also grill up their hotdogs which is much better than the standard dirty water dog. Also, there is another Kwik Meal cart on the SW corner 45th and 5th. Mon Dec 05 16:05:18 -0800 2005 1215684 0 Evan 2 1215780 I am also a fan of the Kwik Meal cart on 45th & 6th Ave. Both the chicken and lamb over rice are good choices and the last time I was there they were offering a chicken/lamb combo meal. A friend at work is partial to the tiger shrimp but I'll pass on that (still not having tasted it.) If it's a nice day you can sit in Bryant Park, or the park behind the big black building diagonally opposite the cart, and enjoy your lunch. My understanding is that the cart is still there in the evening until 9pm or so. The Daisy Mae cart on 50th Street near Rock Center is another favorite and I also like the chili which is billed as Texas Red. I skip the rice and beans and fill up on the chili which is loaded with chunks of beef. Mon Dec 05 22:51:54 -0800 2005 1215684 0 Brian W 1 1215692 For Dinner only, you will find what I was guided to on this board: The Legendary CART. While it may have some official name like "The Best Halal Food in New York" or something like that, in actuality it is just CART or the legendary cart or something. It is open on the SW corner of 53rd and 6th (Remember SW, there are imitators lurking!) from 8pm to 4am 7 days. Get a Chicken Lamb or Combo special. My advice is to show up at 7:30-7:45. Otherwise the line (which occasionally goes on for BLOCKS) may become too daunting. Enjoy! Mon Dec 05 15:59:58 -0800 2005 1215664 0 Nick F. 1 1215706 Don't forget Chinatown- There's more cheap, good food here than in possibly any other part of the city. Good carts abound, including one on the corner of Bowery and Hester (always a line), another on the west side of Centre street, between Walker and Canal, great fried chicken, and several noodle options including a really good Singapore Mei Fun, then on the west side of East Broadway between Catherine and Market street, there's a bakery with a hot cart in the back of the shop. Several noodle options, all $1, all with different ingredients, like ham, shrimp, shredded pork and lots of veggie bits. On Eldridge a block north of Canal is Dumpling House, awesone everything- 5 dumplings for $2, amazing tuna or beef sandwiches on freshly baked (fried) thick doughy scallion pancakes, $1.50 and several soups, $1 and $2. Cannot be beat. The only carts I reccomend against are those selling imitations of hong kong egg cakes, also known as waffle cakes. They smell good, but none of them are, and it seems none of them ever will be. Several years ago, miracle named Cecilia Tam left a red shack on Mosco street, and Chinatown has never been the same. She was the best part of any trip to Chinatown, and though she has been gone for a good while, I'll never forget her and her cakes. I love her. And miss her. Mon Dec 05 16:51:55 -0800 2005 1215664 0 J-Dawgz 2 1215736 Also a window on Mott between Pell and Bayard (I think) that sells great turnip cakes, 3 big ones with a squirt of sauce for $1.75, very filling. Mon Dec 05 18:30:57 -0800 2005 1215706 0 Nancy 2 1215770 J- Thanks! I'm not sure we will get to Chinatown this time around, but I'll keep this handy. Do you know of a good place (Chinatown or otherwise) to get roast pork buns and the sesame balls with the sweet paste inside? I just lost the only Chinese bakery near us in the frozen midwest...I figure there must be someplace in NYC to satisfy my craving... Mon Dec 05 21:26:26 -0800 2005 1215706 0 PamR 3 1215803 Fay-Da bakery -several locations- has a great variety of better than average baked goods, and the pork buns you're looking for are pretty good at the location on Centre street between Canal and Hester - if you hit Howard street, you've walked a little bit too far. I don't know of the sesame balls you're talking about, but I wouldn't be suprised of you can find them at Fay-Da. Also, their versions of non-chinese sweets are pretty good, especially the cheesecake (sixty cents) the danish and the crullers. Try the hot dog wrapped in dough. Not like any hot dog you've ever had, but... Good. My favorite bakery item in C-Town is at Walker and Baxter, a small counter within a Vietnamese restaurant (good but inauthentic food- great bbq pork over rice, $3.50) that has the very best 'don tot' I've ever had. These are egg custard tarts, ethereal custard with lots of good eggy flavor, sweet but not too sweet, and a really flaky and crispy tart crust. At sixty cents apiece you should get several (dozen). They have lots of other bakery stuff, including really good pork buns. Tue Dec 06 10:11:05 -0800 2005 1215770 0 J-Dawgz 1 1215851 If you make it down to the Seaport, the West Indian truck near the corner of Pine St and Maiden Ln has some great food ( I havent eaten there in number of months, but it's been there for years). Don't forget to save room for the currant slice. Tue Dec 06 12:39:31 -0800 2005 1215664 0 RICKO