Yes You Can Use Your Hands
Ever tire of mother’s gentle reminders to take elbows off the table and chew and swallow before speaking? Your Kayak correspondent can relate (sorry mom, elbows still rest on the table). This week’s missive celebrates the best of street food, where good table manners consist of asking for extra napkins. Humble street fare is a great way to get a taste of your destination, especially after a healthy sample of the local nightlife. Pack your TUMS and pay homage at these outdoor culinary temples.
The ultimate in street food must be Philadelphia’s cheese steak. This sandwich is the cornerstone of Philadelphia civic pride, a sensitive subject as Philly sports teams invent new and creative ways to blow games. So important, in fact, that Philly’s cheese stake royalty, cousins Pat and Rick Olivieri, are wrangling in court over the rights to the family trademark. Rather than take sides, your correspondent suggests sharing the love. Pat’s and Geno’s are located across from one another at 9th and Passayunk South. Why pick just one?
- Flights to Philadelphia
- Hotels in Philadelphia
- Talk to other Kayakers about Philadelphia
- Find 4-star hotels in Philly from $87 on Hotwire
Street food has been a New York staple since the 1600s, when German immigrants sold potatoes from carts. Early German vendors’ spirit lives on in the ubiquitous New York hot dog stand. The best known is the Hallo Berlin Wurst cart (Fifth Ave. at 54th St.), winner of the 2005 Vendy Award for best street food in New York. If weiners don’t strike your fancy, try the international flavors of the runners-up: the Best Halal (53rd St. at 6th Ave.) for meat-heavy middle eastern, Dosa Man (Washington Square South at Sullivan St.) for vegetarian Indian, or the Dragon (62nd St. at Madison Ave.) for grilled chicken.
- Flights to New York
- Hotels in New York
- Talk to other Kayakers about New York
- Stay at the Soho Grand from $304/night
Forget the The Ivy or Spago, LA’s real star is the taco. No one knows tacos in this city better than The Taco Hunt who recommends Tacos Por Vor on the Westside, Cactus Taqueria in Hollywood, Fiesta Taco in the Valley or El Parian in LA which received the coveted five taco review, not to mention props from The New York Times and LA Weekly.
- Flights to Los Angeles
- Hotels in Los Angeles
- Talk to other Kayakers about Los Angeles
- Save $10 on tickets to Universal Studios while in LA.
For the truly dedicated, head to the island with the best street food in the world: Penang, Malaysia. Whether you’re looking for Chinese, Malay, Tamil, or Thai food, Penang has it. The city of George Town was recognized by TIME Magazine as having the “Best Street Food” in Asia. TIME recommends “Gurney Drive for char kway teow (stir-fried rice noodles), Balik Pulau for ‘Penang-style’ laksa (more sour than the norm), and King Street for roti panggang-flat bread with coconut jam, toasted on a charcoal grill.” Just stay away from the water.
Get the Fare Buzz for these street food destinations from your home airport.
Heading for the can,
Steve and Paul, Kayak.com co-founders
Kayak Insider Tip:
Want to include your favorite street food destination in our round-up? Love the Kayak Insider and want to re-live the magic and humor of past issues? Now you can! Kayak’s Featured Forums now archive the Kayak Insider. Plus you can comment on each week’s issue to add your own ideas, dispute our claims, and share the love with your friends.