Makina Café

Makina Café founder Eden G. Egziabher was raised amongst an eclectic blend of Ethiopian, Eritrean and Italian cultures. Of the many tings she was able to takeaway from being exposed to so many different ways of life, the food probably stands out the most.

Born in Ethiopia to parents of Eritrean descent, she has been able to bring the best flavors these cultures have to offer, here to the big apple. She prides herself on being the first Eritrean – American female entrepreneur in New York City to be serving “Habesha” food. Habesha is used as a term of pride, the word is used to eliminate the distinction between the different tribes of Eritrea and Ethiopia, celebrating the unity of the regions people.

It’s no wonder that the word Makina (the name of her mobile café) translates to “truck” in Italian, Ethiopian and Eritrean language. It’s these three unique cuisines that make up the delicious mosaic of flavors found on her menu.  Healthy, tasty, and amove all else unique – Makina brings exciting new breakfast and lunch options to New Yorkers everywhere, sure to shake up your routine in the best way possible.

Weather you opt for a delicious bed of yellow rice, or some scrumptious Injera (a sourdough - risen thin flatbread) you are in for a treat. Chicken or beef tibs, cubed and marinated with onions garlic, berbere and loads of other exciting herbs, oh and did we metion the veggies? Fosolia string beans, Gomen collard greens, and Ater split pea stew, just to name a few.

So the next time you are ready to try something new, find the Makina Café roaming around your neighborhood. Follow them at @makinacafe to see where they are everyday!

-Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association

Best Birthday Food Trucks - 2018

            While birthdays may begin to feel routine at a certain point, they never have to be boring. Many of us throw birthday parties at parks, in event spaces, or in our own homes. Not often do guests expect a food truck to arrive. Imagine the surprise and excitement that would bring! Food trucks aren’t just for big corporate parties or festivals, they can be booked for your own personal pleasure at an intimate event of any size. Does your friend have a favorite food truck? And does he or she love a good birthday surprise? NYFTA will bring their favorite vendor straight to their front door.

            Every birthday party needs some fun food options, so here is a list of artisanal food trucks to consider for you or your loved one’s once-a-year celebration:

            Bona Bona Ice Cream

            I have never met a single person who doesn’t like ice cream. It’s a fun and delicious dessert snack loved across all ages. Bona Bona Ice Cream is run by Chef Nick Di Bona, who owns Madison Kitchen. Expect fresh ingredients and original and exciting flavors, like Rainbow Cookie, Nutella Smores, and Holy Cannoli. This truck has a fantastic party option. You pick five flavors and five toppings and choose between milkshakes, sundaes, or just plain old scoops of ice cream.

            Glazed and Confused

            This truck specializes in fresh baked mini donuts with a unique, and sometimes hilarious twist. My favorite is The Hangover, a scrumptious donut with a maple syrup glaze covered in bacon pieces. You may not want to book this truck for a friend if he is watching his cholesterol, but for anyone else, I promise they won’t be disappointed.

            Red Hook Lobster Pound

            Desserts are wonderful, but if your loved one likes savory more than sweet, then I recommend the Red Hook Lobster Pound truck. Lobster is almost universally enjoyed. Who wouldn’t want a lobster roll on their birthday? It’s the quintessential East Coast snack. Just imagine your party snacking on lobster mac and cheese in this lovely spring weather.

Take a look at our other vendors, too, This is only a small slice of what the New York Food Truck Association has to offer.

0-Your Friends at the New York Fod Truck Association

Food Trends Coming to a Sidewalk Near You

Food Trends

When it comes to trends, New York City is ground zero. It’s safe to say that any and all trends are born and spread, right from this little island. So being an epicenter of culture, cuisine, and trends , it’s only natural that the food trends we’re seeing here on the streets, will be heading all around the country this year.

While restaurants are a great venue to get exposed to the newest trends, we like to be even more ahead of the game: the food trucks scene allows for a flexibility and creativity that you just can’t experience in brick and mortar restaurant. These chefs are able to truly flex their creativity and ingenuity in ways more established restaurants just cant. Many of them choose to take the food truck path, because they don’t want to be restricted by the classic structure of a restaurant, and do want to be able to stay true to the flavors and methods that inspire them.

So we’ve taken to the streets to find out what everyone is going to be eating this year.

Fusion: we’re seeing it everywhere from Midtown to Downtown, and it’s delicious. From Korean bulgogi filling our tacos, to beer battered fish filling out hot dogs. Worlds are colliding and we couldn’t be more down.

Unexpected cooking methods: When you think about preparing your ice cream, a blow torch probably isn’t one of the first tools on your list, but Bona Bona Ice Cream has another plan, using a blow torch to sizzle the caramel on top of the cone, creating a ice cold experience, that’s hot.

Breakfast for dinner (and lunch and dessert): Waffles everywhere, the classic breakfast food has transcended it’s early morning slot, and worked it’s way into every corner of our day, from savory and lunch and dinner, to uber sweet for dessert and all the way through the wee hours of the night into fourth meal.

You heard it here first folks, now go get out there and get yourself a taste!

-Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association

Our Favorite Food Truck Friendly Venues

So you’ve got an idea for a reception, party, or festival, and you’ve picked some food trucks from our selection of gourmet vendors, but now it's time to figure out the location. Finding the right venue isn’t easy. New York City contains an astounding number of potential spaces. Luckily, the New York Food Truck Association knows about all the best spots. Here is a helpful guide to some of our favorite partners, so you don’t have to go through the hassle of tracking a venue down yourself.

Duggel Greenhouse, Building 268, 63 Flushing Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11201

Located in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, this 35,000-square-foot warehouse boasts beautiful views of the Manhattan skyline and the bridge. With its tall wall of paneled windows facing the East River, sunlight pours in every day and brightens it to awe-inspiring levels of luminosity. The skyline glows at night time and brings in a truly glamorous atmosphere, the kind that demands champagne and dancing. There’s a reason why Beyoncé, Lady GaGa, Frank Ocean, and Madonna have booked the space at some point. It’s the kind of venue that suits art shows and performances, but also screams New York City, Baby! With a 300 to 3,000-person capacity, Yacht service, and access to a waterfront patio and bar, it’s the right place if you want your event to sparkle in your guests' memories.

Space In The Raw, Various Locations

 Looking for a smaller warehouse? Or do you just want to browse through a tastefully curated list of options? Space In The Raw is one of the most reliable and easy-to-use sources for finding a venue. Their catalog includes 72 spaces throughout the city’s five boroughs, and their website employs a convenient search filter so you can type in your budget, dates, capacity, and whatever amenities you need, and find the space that suits your event the best. This is perfect if you’ve got specific requests, or if you need to be more thrifty money-wise.

The Foundry, 42-38 9th Street, Long Island City, NY 11101

This restored 19th century building is wonderful for those with a taste for elegance. The 3,000-square-foot interior has been duly renovated to illuminate the building’s more Victorian architectural details. You’ll feel like you’re stepping into a set on The Bachelor. I’m not kidding. The Foundry is immensely popular for weddings. A number of corporate and suit-and-tie events have filled the space as well. Once you browse through the website’s gallery and see the courtyard and the greenhouse, I promise you will immediately swoon over this venue’s beauty.

-Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association

Cater Your Springtime Bonanza!

            Tuesday was the first day of Spring (though you wouldn’t be able to tell from the weather) and it won’t be long until rays of sun heat up our city to temperatures perfect for outdoor events. The easiest way to provide gourmet options for your company picnic, baby shower, or arts fair, would be to book a food truck with us! Of course, food service is not just about the food: You have to transport supplies, provide plates and utensils, hire food runners and servers, and make the whole process smooth and simple so nobody is left hungry.

            That’s where the New York Food Truck Association comes in. We have 10+ years of experience catering events. All of that logistical stuff? We’ll do it for you.

Our team can craft menus that will accommodate any diet restrictions. Vegetarian? Gluten-free? Paleo-Pescatarian? We got it covered. NYFTA can source the perfect wait staff and help plan out the event space so that your party has enough seats, tables, recycling and garbage bins, napkins, or any other necessity. Book with us, and we’ll also guarantee a stress-free billing and paperwork process. Our professionals make sure that all the food trucks are insured and up-to-date with inspections. Nothing slides by us!

            Catering an event is a kind of performance art. Every step of the process demands meticulous planning and oversight. Our team finds creative ways to expedite food service and provide fantastic customer service, and much like a Broadway show, our front-of-house and back-of-house staff members combine their efforts to create the best experience possible. We also always incorporate an element of fun—whether it’s through our colorful trucks or charming catering staff.

            Check out our long list of award-winning vendors. You may even recognize some of our trucks; we hire only the best. Contact us today to submit an inquiry. Happy Spring!

- Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association 

Custom Food Truck Build Outs - What We Do

New York City is notorious for being a place where even the wildest dreams can become a reality. Weather it’s on Broadway, or in a skyscraper downtown, it’s the concrete jungle where dreams are made of. Did you know that New York City is also where all of your wildest food truck dreams can come true too? When it comes to making an unforgettable experience for your brand, we say go big.

We’re here to help you turn your food truck fantasies into a reality, every step of the way. From designing the menu and budgeting, to picking the right generator and point of sale system, our experienced, professional team is there to help throughout the entire process.

Imagination is key, we can help dream up and execute a unique vehicle that stands out, gets attention, and most of all represents your brand exactly how you want. No idea is too big for us to turn into a reality. Super modern, to very vintage – we can help you achieve any style and get your audience engaged and excited.

Having been in the food truck game her in NYC for over 10 years, we are ready to tackle any curveball that comes our way, and we’ve seen and done it all. Established relationships with everyone on every level help guarantee a smooth experience – our teams of local manufacturers, builders, and vendors are ready to provide the best service at the best price, so expect smiles all around (and leave room for seconds.)

- Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association 

What We Do - Make Corporate Culinary

With our assembly of the best mobile kitchens in New York, we are here to help you create delicious memories at your next corporate event big or small. Anything from a team lunch at the office, to a feeding the whole team at an off site event, we have you covered every step of the way.

We work with you and our vendors to make sure everything is sorted. Helping you choose which truck is going to be the best for your team, considering everyone’s tastes, preferences, and dietary restrictions, we’ll even get a special menu just for the event.

Don't sweat the small stuff. Paper work, insurance, logistics, save that for your own business – get the best in culinary entertainment without having to tear your hair out about it.

We can go anywhere.  Airport tarmac, midtown office, Brooklyn warehouse, if it’s somewhere you want to eat, we have you covered. Just tell us what you want and where you want it and we handle the rest.  So give your team the best, an amazing culinary corporate experience is just a click away.

-Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association

Add Some Flavor To Your Brand

It’s a well-known fact that the fastest way to someone’s heart is through their stomach, so if you’re a brand looking to capture the hearts of your audience – we’ve got just the place for you to start. We make it a breeze to launch and execute your own food truck marketing campaign. Branded food trucks provide a fun, memorable, and most of all delicious experience for your all your biggest fans – and most of all provides a unique engaging way to spread the word to new customers.

We work with you, in partnership with our many fantastic clients, to create awesome experiential marketing campaigns in New York City and beyond. There’s truly no better way to get the attention of an audience than through I stylish, delicious, food truck!

These custom branded mobile kitchens are sure to make a splash wherever they go, and they can go wherever. Trying to get the attention of hip Brooklynites, we’ll help you find the spot. Uptown, we got you, anywhere your present or future audience may be waiting for you, we’re ready to send in the trucks to match your taste.  And destinations are not limited just to NYC, we even do national tours with stops all across the country, your brand can literally sweep the nation one delicious bite at a time.

We work directly with our amazing food truck clients to help provide you the most relevant experience for your brand, and we have you covered from start to finsh, handling every detail. With over a decade of food truck experience we are sure to make sure everything goes off without a hitch, and keeps them coming back for seconds.

-Your Friends at the New York Food Truck Association

What We Do - Large Scale Events

            Are you day dreaming about the festival season? The city is warming up fast, and it may be time to plan your next big event! If you’re in the business, I’m sure you know that food can make or break a festival experience. A great art, music, or film festival needs great cuisine options, and we are here to make it happen.

As a professional team of food truck enthusiasts, we can help you cater your large-scale event with our delicious gourmet options and our unique and fun approach to hospitality. The NYFTA provides top-notch consulting and catering services in New York City and the tri-state area. Our staff is experienced with the ins and outs of bringing food for events as big as New York Comic Con (which we’ve catered) or as small as a corporate party (which we do all the time). We are fun, flexible, and fully committed to making sure your event is a wild success.

            Our food truck army consists of some of the finest chefs in the most efficient and modern kitchens you could ever imagine on wheels. The convenience of food trucks is transformative. We can transport food from the streets of the city at lunchtime to the gargantuan parks that host the biggest festivals in the nation. Many of our members are award-winning and recognized across the country, and some of our trucks have been in business for generations. We got it all—from tacos to falafel to Korean BBQ. Festival goers in New York have a refined and worldly taste for food, and NYFTA is all about representing various cuisine all around the world.           

            Throwing a big event is stressful. We know! So from start to finish, we make sure that everything runs smoothly. Sourcing trucks or carts, figuring out the best cuisine options, printing out custom menus, providing wait staff, we will do it all so that you don’t have to worry about keeping your guests full and satisfied. That’s our job.

            Scope out our vendors and reach out to us if you have any questions or requests! Also, check out our video from Comic Con, if you want to get a little taste of what we can do for you. 

What we do – Food Truck Wedding Catering

You already know we here at the NYFTA have curated the most diverse and delicious assortment of New York food vendors. With the finest foods from every corner of the food pyramid represented, from burritos to bulgogi, and even bulgogi burritos. All of our vendors specialties make every day special, so you can only imagine how special they can make your special day.

Photo via. Kitchen Treaty

When it comes to planning a wedding there are a million details, big and small to consider. Obviously the most important of these: the food, and that’s where we come in.  From beginning to end we are there to make sure everything is planned and cooked to perfection.

Stress free booking, where you tell us what you want, and we sort the details. We can even help with custom menu’s whether that means accommodating particular diet restrictions, providing Glatt Kosher options, or just want the menu to represent your journey on your big day – use your imagination, and we’ll make it happen.

Having been in the food truck business for ever 10 years, we have seen it all. These trucks are not just people we hire, there are friends, and they re ready to proved the most top-notch service and quality, sure to serve of tons of smiles, and keep them coming back for more. Best of all, forget about dealing with paperwork – we handle all the details from making sure trucks are properly insured, to all the billing details – so you can focus on having a perfect day, and an even better honeymoon.

-Ypur Friends at the New York Food Truck Association