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New York without street food is like a subway without delays. It might be technically possible, but it would be utterly unimaginable.
While modern-day halal carts perfume entire blocks, Dutch settlers first started hawking oysters centuries before, making the city’s street food story remarkable in both its breadth and depth. Now, the Museum of Food and Drink (MOFAD) is giving that legacy its own spotlight with “Street Food City,” a new exhibition opening on December 6.
Located inside Empire Stores in DUMBO, the show dives into four centuries of vendors who helped build the city one pretzel, roasted nut and chicken-over-rice plate at a time. In addition to the culinary deep-dive, the exhibition pays homage to the entrepreneurs who have weathered crackdowns and winter wind tunnels to feed millions of people. MOFAD’s curatorial team pulled in a brain trust of experts, including Smithsonian and NYU scholars and advocates at the Street Vendor Project, to trace how street vending has shaped neighborhoods, livelihoods and the larger food identity of the city.
Of course, no one expects you to stare at a perfectly braided pretzel without wanting one. Admission to the exhibition includes tasting from some of the city’s most beloved vendors, including Sigmunds’ warm pretzels, Joyva’s halvah and the famous red and white sauces from the Halal Guys. It’s basically museum-going with built-in snacks.
MOFAD also partnered with the World Food Photography Awards for the first-ever New York City showing of its globally sourced street-food images—moving portraits of vendors, families and late-night carts from around the world. The photographs are spread throughout the building, showing how food connects communities far beyond the five boroughs.
The show also tackles the realities vendors face, like historic licensing battles and today’s push for expanded rights. It places the iconic food cart in its full context: a site of creativity, survival and, sometimes, political struggle. The result is a portrait of New York that feels both familiar and newly illuminated.
Tickets start at $17 and include all tastings. “Street Food City” runs Thursday through Sunday, 12–6pm, at 55 Water Street.