Street Food in Ottawa [Food/Vendor]

2008 Jul 16
Since the provincial gov't's annoucement relaxing the types of food street vendors can offer (see ---> ogov.newswire.ca <---), I've not seen any movement on this in Ottawa. Just the same-'ol same-'ol hot dogs and sausages.

Are things stuck in City Hall ?

Has anyone out there seen any new street foods ?

I can imagine the strong lobby from the Ottawa Restaurant Assoc. to prevent any new foods. (What a uproar ther would be if a vender starts to sell cheap Bridies, Cornish Pasties, Scotch Eggs, Bannock etc. near a Royal Joke (whoops... I mean Oak)).

Here is what was happening in TO last summer ---> www.chowhound.com <---.

I understand the need for public health safety when it comes to food preperation and the Ottawa street venders will never look like the ones throughout Asia. Like the Satay vendor in the picture.


2008 Jul 16
Captain C - After reading the OGov link, I would definitely like to see more variety. I personally would lean more towards the hot foods (I'd feel safer with those than the mayo based salad). I think it would be great to have a corn-on-the-cob vendor... fresh hot cobs of corn served on paper plates, with a side of chilled butter pats and packaged salt & pepper (so I don't have to share other peoples icky mess, LOL). So yummy, and a better choice than the current hamburgers, hot dogs and sausages.

And you are right, it is most likely that we haven't heard anything about this from City Hall, because well, "what else is new?"

2008 Jul 16
Well I guess my standards are much lower than everyone else's!-:) I am just so happy to have chip wagons here I never thought of hoping for anything else... I recall a visit to the Byward Market a few years ago when one of the vendors had a coleman stove set up at his stall and some freshly cooked corn-on-the-cob simmering away. He was giving out the corn-on-the-cobs for people to sample. It was late afternoon and I was hankering for a snack after a busy afternoon of shopping. I'm not sure if he had been giving away freebies all afternoon or if it was just because it was the end of the day but let me tell you that corn sure tasted good! Hmmm a corn-on-the-cob "chip" wagon - I could go for that!

2008 Jul 16
One of my friends wants to open a crepe truck. This would be awesome but I doubt he'll ever get off his ass and do it. So, someone steal his idea because I really like the idea of buying crepes from a truck.

2008 Jul 16
Mousseline - I like that idea too! What a great way to have breakie on the weekend while walking around downtown. I agree someone steal it soon, PLLLLEASE.

2008 Jul 16
Mousse - it's not a truck, but, there's a vendor that just opened up at the Carp Farmers Market that serves sweet & savory crepes now! They looked delicious, but I was full after consuming a huge beef on bun & coleslaw. I'll be trying some this week, hopefully!

2008 Jul 16
Oh man, crepes. I love love love crepes. If someone did this in Ottawa, I'd make a b-line for it every time I was back in town. I miss how in Paris you can get a good crepe on almost every street corner (although admittedly, the GREAT crepes take more work to find).

Here in TO the street vendor idea has stalled yet again, due to city hall nonsense. TasteTO.com referred to it as 'heaping piles of bureaucratic bullcrap'. www.nationalpost.com

2008 Jul 16
I haven't seen this truck on the road, but it was parked by the new Canadian Tire on Carling. It was a Shawarma Wagon! But of course, I'm wondering why? It's not as though Ottawa has any shortage of places to get Shawarma, but maybe their route is through a Shawarma-deprived area.

Still waiting for a pho wagon though.

2008 Jul 17
Interestingly, at least to me, NYC now has awards for the best street food. They call it the vendies. I had the best steak sandwhich of my life as a result of this site. Just google vendies.

cheers

2008 Jul 17
Just ran into a radio report on these awards from NPR. We can only hope that this is the way we're heading with the new rules in Ontario; just need our City Halls to get in gear.

www.npr.org


2008 Dec 28
With P-I-O's recent comment on Churros being on Wellington Street, some time back, I thought I would bring this thread back to life.

With many many cities other than Ottawa serving a wide variety of street food, Why can't we have some more choices here ???

Or are there alternatives, besides chip wagons and hotdog stands out there, that I do not know about ? ... like the fore-mentioned churros.

What do the Ottawa Foodies want to see next summer? (I heard crepes so far.)

Maybe I should start a street food business.

What was the best street food you had during a trip outside Ottawa or even outside Canada ?


2008 Dec 29
Best street food ever was in Mexico eating beef tacos. Otherwise, street food in NYC and Portland were the best (for various things, from Indian to Mexican food).

Ottawa is truly pathetic when it comes to street food when you stack them up against other cities. It seems that our streets are overrun with (bad) poutine vendors & sausage slingers. The only interesting, open air, prepared food vendors can be found at Farmers Markets here in Ottawa. Oh, and if someone opened a churro/taco cart in Ottawa, I'd be likely to back them financially. Please contact me.

2008 Dec 30
Ah, what I would not give for Tamales freshly steamed and churros filled with dulce de leche, please street food vendors give us some good food in 2009!

2009 Jun 23
New food vendors in Ottawa?

Try the new Shawarma Wagon on Rideau Street (at King Edward). It's the yellow truck in the parking lot.

Great food. Yummy. More info: ottawafoodies.com/vendor/1717

2009 Jun 23
Yes, we've commented on it elsewhere... the "Shawagon"... hehe