VOA标准英语2009年-Street Food in New York City Comes of Age

By Nathan King
New York City
05 November 2009

 
Vendy Award trophy¹
Street food in New York conjures² up images of hot dogs and pretzels served from carts by recent immigrants. But now, a whole new breed of food trucks is hitting the streets, with offerings as varied³ as Asian dumplings and Austrian schnitzel. These vendors⁵ attract loyal customers, and now they are getting formal recognition from New York's food establishment in the form of an award called the Vendy, which has been called the Oscar for New York's eating public.   

Restaurants have long sought recognition by getting a favorable review in a major newspaper, or a listing in the Michelin and Zagat guides, but there has never been much recognition for street food vendors. Now that has changed and vendors all over New York City are hustling⁶ to win the ultimate prize in their business: the Vendy.

Now in its fifth year, the Vendy honors the best street food in New York. And we are not talking about the hot dog and pretzel stands of years past, but a new generation of multi ethnic⁷ food brought to New York from around the world. 

 
Fernando and Jolando Martinez
This year's overall winners were Fernando and Jolando Martinez for their Country Boys Taco Truck; in the dessert category Thomas DeGeest's Belgian waffles cart; and winning the People's Choice award for the second year in a row - the Biriyani cart run by Banglasdeshi Meru Sikder. "This is one of the best sellers I have in Midtown Manhattan...Typical Indian Food, made on Chapati roll with Chicken Yoghurt and Spices," Sikder said.

Sikder shows off the kati rolls that helped him clinch⁸ the title. He says his secret is in the freshness of his ingredients and the cheap cost of selling food on the street - which means he can sell food for less money than restaurants can.

Some customers remarks:
" It's fantastic it actually rivals many of the Indian restaurants, many of the sit-down restaurants that you have in the area.

"The lamb over rice unbelievable - highly recommend it. Hot sauce white sauce delicious!"

From spicy⁹ to sweet. A few blocks away, Thomas DeGeest, the winner of the Vendy for Best Dessert shows off his gas-powered Belgian waffle maker¹⁰ and ingredients.

DeGeest says he left a corporate¹¹ career to pursue his dream of running his own business. He says he loves bringing a bit of Belgium to New York. "People have very stressed lives here in New York and what we give them is five minutes of childhood and happiness which is a good thing," he said.

The Vendy awards do more than promote street food. Proceeds from the event go to the Street Vendor⁴ Project, which protects the rights of vendors who operate about five-thousand food carts in the city.

This year's overall winner Fernanado Martinez and his family faced eviction¹² from this area of Brooklyn in 2007. Now the Martinez family operates the most celebrated¹³ food truck in New York. "I think I'm happier when I see a lot of people - not just Mexicans or Latinos - also North Americans who come to eat - to taste the food and they like it," he said.

Like many other vendors, Martinez dreams of one day opening a restaurant. But with a slow economy and growing popularity for street food, a four-wheeled cart seems to be a better bet, for now.

1 trophy   

n.优胜旗，奖品，奖杯，战胜品，纪念品

参考例句：

• The cup is a cherished trophy of the company.那只奖杯是该公司很珍惜的奖品。
• He hung the lion's head as a trophy.他把那狮子头挂起来作为狩猎纪念品。

2 conjures   

用魔术变出( conjure的第三人称单数 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现

参考例句：

• The word 'birthday' conjures up images of presents and parties. “生日”这个词使人想起礼物和聚会的情景。
• The name Sahara conjures up images of a desert of aridity. "撒哈拉"这个名字使人想起干旱的沙漠情景。

3 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

4 vendor   

n.卖主；小贩

参考例句：

• She looked at the vendor who cheated her the other day with distaste.她厌恶地望着那个前几天曾经欺骗过她的小贩。
• He must inform the vendor immediately.他必须立即通知卖方。

5 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 hustling   

催促（hustle的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Our quartet was out hustling and we knew we stood good to take in a lot of change before the night was over. 我们的四重奏是明显地卖座的， 而且我们知道在天亮以前，我们有把握收入一大笔钱。
• Men in motors were hustling to pass one another in the hustling traffic. 开汽车的人在繁忙的交通中急急忙忙地互相超车。

7 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

8 clinch   

v.敲弯，钉牢；确定；扭住对方 [参]clench

参考例句：

• Clinch the boards together.用钉子把木板钉牢在一起。
• We don't accept us dollars,please Swiss francs to clinch a deal business.我方不收美元，请最好用瑞士法郎来成交生意。

9 spicy   

adj.加香料的；辛辣的，有风味的

参考例句：

• The soup tasted mildly spicy.汤尝起来略有点辣。
• Very spicy food doesn't suit her stomach.太辣的东西她吃了胃不舒服。

10 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

11 corporate   

adj.共同的，全体的；公司的，企业的

参考例句：

• This is our corporate responsibility.这是我们共同的责任。
• His corporate's life will be as short as a rabbit's tail.他的公司的寿命是兔子尾巴长不了。

12 eviction   

n.租地等的收回

参考例句：

• The family have won a temporary reprieve from eviction.这个家庭暂时免于被逐出。
• He claimed damages for unlawful eviction.他要求对非法驱逐作出赔偿。

13 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。