Informing WORD readers about the affordable and beautiful restaurants around the city. All these places are accessible by subway, bus and, of course, foot transportation.

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NYC LOVE is a blossoming street coffee brand that is set to become the next New York staple. Following in the footsteps of Union Square’s MUD Truck, LOVE coffee already has local appeal.

Since its debut in the spring of 2007, LOVE has been spreading all over downtown. LOVE is on Wall Street. On Liberty Street in the financial district during the mornings. At 14th Street and Fifth Avenue in the afternoons.

The established coffee shops of the city don’t know or show LOVE like Jay Cintron does. He personalizes every cup, noting that, “presentation is key.” LOVE customers are amazed at the quality of service that’s offered to them. Cintron always asks, “How do you like it?” providing New Yorkers with the uncommon courtesy of extra LOVE.

It’s a step away from the service found in the walls of the impersonal coffee chains. With a lilLove and bigLove selling at one and two dollars a cup, it’s one of the best bargains in the city.

With the extra LOVE and attention Cintron, who lives in the Bronx and commutes to work in Astoria, Queens, invests in his business, the customer following has grown. In a city full of breakfast carts and hotdog stands, a specialty coffee truck is a rare find. Moreover, it’s hard to come by vendors who wholly believe in their niches of specialty and actually care to cater to customers’ requests.

The Love Truck isn’t the first of its kind by any means. A variety of specialty trucks have been around the city and the outer boroughs for years. Catering to different customers and needs, mobile vendors are starting to get creative.

Wafels & Dinges is a startup company that covers the Belgian waffle niche. Found right in front of Traders Joe’s on 14th street most days, the truck caters to the NYU students and those that work in the area.

For four dollars, customers can choose between a light and crispy Belgian waffle or a soft and chewy liege waffle. Add dinges (DIN-gees) to your liking, they’re the toppings that you can choose to put all over your waffles. The humorous menu isn’t too long, but the customer can clearly see that quality outweighs quantity in this truck.

The company prides itself on the fact that their Belgian waffles are actually made and served by a Belgian! Thomas DeGeest dropped his six figure income at IBM to start up Wafels and Dinges. That fact alone shows how much passion is invested into the vendor truck. You can check them out on the web at wafelanddinges.com

What’s all this food without dessert? The Dessert Truck located on 8th Street and University Place, caters to the late night college scene. This truck if for the city dwellers that need to satisfy a sweet tooth after dinner.

Arriving at their sole location at 6pm Tuesday through Sunday, the dessert truck serves up the sweet stuff until they run out of it. All of the desserts, which are made fresh daily, are five dollars a pop. The menu is always changing, but it’s always oh-so-sweet.

There are certain advantages to having a mobile business. Mobile vendors don’t have to worry about the high price of rent in the city. They’re also not limited to one location, if business is slow – move! There are also a number of downsides to mobile vending, to top list – parking. Vendor truck locations are like prime real estate. With the right spot, specialty vendors can make a killing.

Specialized vendor trucks are few and far between, and quality is definitely held much higher than quantity. Says Cintron, “It takes a different breed of person do to this type of thing.”

It takes a certain level of passion, ambition, and strategy to become successful with a business that doesn’t have an address.


Maria Rosana Cruz can be contacted at mcruz@hunter.cuny.edu,