Home page

Text size

E-mail this page

SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
With this year's Old Town Ramble and Ride festival now in the rear-view mirror for the city's mobile food vendors, it will soon be back to the day job for most.

Indian Palace vendor Raj Nunkoo serves a plate of chicken curry on July 21 at Folk on the Rocks. - Thandiwe Vela/NNSL photo

While regulars such as Jevati Hotdogs and One of a Thai can be found indoors year-round, Raj Nunkoo's Indian Palace stand seen at Folk on the Rocks and even the jingles of the ice cream truck will soon be memories of the summer.

"It all depends on the weather," said ice cream man Tamer "Tim" Akbulut, as he returned to his regular job driving a taxi Monday. "The weekend was very bad. Straight rain and cloudy and windy, so there was no business for me."

At the mercy of the weather, mobile vendors also face challenges of 12-hour days at some events, generator problems, labour shortages, traffic uncertainty, and a lack of parking. Still, they look forward to the summer months when they can hit the streets.

"The only thing that's difficult is to find parking," said Sousanh Chanthalangsy of One of a Thai, which is usually parked at lunchtime in front of the Greenstone Building.

"That's the only stressful thing to find a parking spot. Other than that it's really good," Chanthalangsy said, adding she prefers the street vending over the Thai restaurant's indoor curling club location.

"We like to get outdoors more," she said. "We get to go where the traffic is. We go where the people are, it's a lot easier."

Jevati Hotdogs vendor Gulen Gelale also prefers the outdoor stand over the indoor concession stand he runs at the Community Arena during the rest of the year. But he has lost out at times while vending at summer events where organizers can charge steep entry fees for vendors, he said.

"The food is just as part of the festival as everything else," said Robin Wasicuna, whose Wiseguy Foods sandwich truck was stationed at Folk on the Rocks and at Ramble and Ride.

During the off-season, Wasicuna also runs a catering service under the same company name, offering intimate, customizable at-home multi-course meals for couples or groups up to 50 people.

Chanthalangsy plans to continue serving One of a Thai on the street until October, but for Nunkoo, who's regular job is in the cleaning industry, the Indian Palace stand may not be back until next summer's festivals - to the disappointment of customers who relish the variety of food.

"The feedback of the people that we had is we need an Indian restaurant here," said Nunkoo, who would like to open a standalone restaurant in the future.

Like Nunkoo, Wasicuna would also like to open a restaurant in the future. However, for the time being, the mobile business and his catering are the only feasible ways for people to taste his food.

We welcome your opinions. Click here to e-mail a letter to the editor.