For Street Vendors, Taking a Break Comes at a Price

File this under the “More than you ever wanted to know about the people who sell you hot dogs on the street” category.
Starting January 1 of this year, food carts in New York that are left unattended can be seized by officials from the Department of Health.
Street vendors protested yesterday in downtown Manhattan, claiming they are being unfairly singled out. They say they could lose their licenses if they even run into a store or restaurant, to, um, use the facilities. Vendors sometimes ask a friend to watch their carts while they’re away, but that’s not always possible. They say the law should be eliminated, or at least changed, to provide for necessary time away from the cart, like a bathroom break, health issue, or emergency.
One peanut vendor near City Hall had his license taken away last week after leaving his cart to use a bathroom. (The vendor, who has worked for the last 12 years, was gone for about half an hour--he said that long lines prevented him from returning earlier.) Many supporters say that actually seizing the license was a first.
Supporters of the law, however, say that leaving carts unsupervised, even briefly, is a public safety hazard. Department of Health of officials countered the vendors’ arguments by saying that short breaks are allowed (although the exact time vendors are allowed away from their carts has never been specified), but that the food must be secured before the vendors leave.

Want Sauerkraut With Your Van Gogh? Museum's Street Vendors Clash with Police

Those who like their art with a hot dog--and really, who doesn’t--may have to choose between the two if they visit New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. Street food vendors have been tussling with police as of late, as officers have begun to crack down on the vendors who sell food outside the entrances to the building.
The skirmishes have to do largely with where the carts are positioned: Officers say the carts are too far from the curb; vendors say they lose no matter what: that if they are too far from the curb they are ticketed; if too close, they are still ticketed, but for obstructing bus and taxi stops.
Also at issue are the rights of disabled veterans who operate or work at many of the carts; this policy stems from a 2007 event in which a disabled vet said a law from the 1800s allowed him to operate in areas that might not be available to others.
The city says only one vendor can operate in front of the Met at a time; but on any given day the Museum is open, four or five or sometimes more carts can be seen.
(Earlier in the month, a vendor was evicted for failing to pay the extremely steep rent for renting a space for a cart in front of the Museum—estimates say rent can be as high as $50,000+ a month.)
So grab your hot dog now, if you must—or you may have to face the Renaissance without a snack.