Convenience and Fast Foods

Progressively Modest: Eric Mar Stays out of the Headlines

Happy Meal Lawsuit Dismissed

As San Francisco -- and its elected leaders -- discovered, it will require more than the legislative branch of government to vanquish the specter of the McDonald's Happy Meal. It turns out it'll take more than the judicial branch, too. A San Francisco judge has shot down a lawsuit filed by a frustra ... More >>

Happy Meal Ban: City, Health Activists Chagrined by McDonald's

​Earlier: Happy Meal Ban: McDonald's Outsmarts San FranciscoHow the Happy Meal Ban Explains San FranciscoIt seems the phrase "like stealing candy from a baby" is due for retirement. When describing a malicious act committed with ease, the new phrase is "easier than eluding San Francisco's Happy Me ... More >>

Pal's Takeaway Begins Serving TV Dinners

​Pal's Takeaway, the permanent popup on 24th Street whose sandwiches the SF Weekly has loved up on numerous occasions, has come up with a new product to sell: take-home TV dinners. Yep, the kind that come in compartmentalized aluminum containers covered in foil. Starting this week, every Thursday ... More >>

Happy Meal 2.0: McDonald's to Cut Back on Fries

Healthier Happy Meal makes S.F. ... happy​San Francisco became the nation's laughingstock -- and Public Enemy No. 1 for children -- when it rolled out the controversial Happy Meal ban. You might recall the epic Daily Show episode where Aasif Mandvi gave the man behind the ban, Supervisor Eric Mar, ... More >>

Junk Food Vendors at Marin High School Get Caught Up in Food Fight

The kids are all mine! No, mine!​Like a group of unruly teenagers, mobile junk food vendors at a Marin high school have been physically fighting each other outside the school to get the best spot where they can easily sell sugar and fatty foods to students. According to a Wall Street Journal artic ... More >>

Junk Food Ban Weighed -- For Seagulls

Gross​Since seagulls are mysteriously dying by the dozens at Pier 94 rendering plant after feasting on offal, the Board of Supervisors has been urged to enforce a larine version of a junk food ban.At its Feb. 10 meeting, the city's Animal Care & Control Commission introduced a drafted letter t ... More >>

How the Happy Meal ban explains San Francisco

San Francisco Bans the Happy Meal -- With Veto-Proof Majority

Veto-proof majority! Robble robble. ​It seems the San Francisco Board of Supervisors has accomplished what the Hamburglar never could. They've made off with McDonald's fare. The supes today passed an ordinance that will require meals to meet nutritional guidelines if restaurants wish to include a ... More >>

S.F. Supes Pass Happy Meal Ban with Veto-Proof Majority

​Snitch editor Joe Eskenazi has the word on today's vote by the Board of Supervisors to end toy giveaways for fast-food meals that fail to rate as nutritious. Eskenazi: The supes today passed an ordinance that will require meals to meet nutritional guidelines if restaurants wish to include a t ... More >>

Bevan Dufty Remains City's Burger Kingmaker as Happy Meal Ban Vote Looms

What's inside the box? That depends on Bevan Dufty.​With the city's contentious "Happy Meal legislation" up for a vote tomorrow, Bevan Dufty, the city's least contentious supervisor, finds himself a popular man. Dufty, a moderate and mayoral candidate, would be the eighth vote in favor of a plan t ... More >>

Bevan Dufty Will Be Deciding Vote on Happy Meal Toy Ban Tomorrow

​From our sister blog, The Snitch, comes the latest update in the ongoing saga of the Happy Meal Toy Ban. For those not in the know, supervisor Eric Mar introduced a measure that, if approved, would prevent McDonald's locations in San Francisco from distributing toys with Happy Meals, with the rea ... More >>

How Long Does it Take a Happy Meal to Decay?

A screenshot of Sally Davies' Flickr page​ Photographer Sally Davies has tackled a question that many of us probably try not to think about: just how long does it take a McDonalds Happy Meal to decay, anyway?  The artist purchased a Happy Meal on April 10th, 2010 and left it on her coffee t ... More >>

Next Month's SF Street Food Festival Is Going to Be Bigger Than Last Year's. Did We Say Bigger?

John Birdsall/2009What organizers are trying to avoid at next month's pavement-cuisine fest: a clusterf*%k.​A month before the SF Street Food Festival turns a seven-block swath of the Mission into a grazing mall, organizer Caleb Zigas sounds like he's on a sales pitch. The festival debuted in ... More >>

City Says Yes to Three New Off the Grid Street-Food Markets for S.F. Parks

Chris MacArthur/SF WeeklyMobile vendors (like the ones pictured here at Off the Grid at Fort Mason Center) should soon be rolling into three city neighborhoods.​More than four hours into yesterday's Rec and Park meeting, commissioners approved a proposal to create three mobile street-food mark ... More >>

Off the Grid Organizer Seeking Permits for Street-Food Markets in S.F. Parks

Chris MacArthur/SF WeeklyRec and Park commissioners vote Thursday to allow Off the Grid-like markets in three city parks.​The organizer of S.F.'s Off the Grid street-food market at Fort Mason Center could soon be rolling out similar events in three city parks. At Thursday's regularly scheduled ... More >>

Vote for Your Favorite Street-Food Vendor to Score a Slot at Mission Festival

FoodspottingThe top eight vote getters will be eligible for vending time at the SF Street Food Festival Aug. 21.​Last year's first-ever SF Street Food Festival blew up like perhaps nobody could have predicted, including organizer La Cocina. This year's plans call for just about everything to b ... More >>

Tomorrow's Final (For Now) Mission Street Food Explores Its Greatest Hits

Tamara PalmerPB & J (pork belly and jicama), the signature Mission Street Food classic.​Those of us rocking back and forth in the corner, wondering how the hell we're going to make our own PB & J (pork belly and jicama) sandwiches, will find some solace in tomorrow night's final (for now) Miss ... More >>

Happy Endings at Mercury Lounge: Late-Night Filipino Street Food Minus the Cart

Mercury's take on Filipino street food drops on weekend nights.​Earlier this month, Mercury Lounge launched Happy Endings Kitchen, a late-night sidewalk window serving Filipino street food Fridays and Saturdays, minus the cart, and with a bit of extra attitude. "Are you sure you [sic] late ni ... More >>

Jonathan Kauffman Takes on S.F.'s Korean Junk Food Explosion

J. KauffmanThe kimchi-pork hot dog from John's Snack and Deli.​It's happened. Thanks to vivid incarnations dished up via John's Snack and Deli, Seoul on Wheels, and Namu Street Food, Korean-fusion junk food has entered the popular vernacular in S.F., inspired by local tastes and the West Coast ... More >>

Roaming Hunger Connects Bay Area Mobile Food Scene to Growing National Movement

​Launched in December, Roaming Hunger is a San Francisco-based Web site providing elusive inter-connectivity among street-food purveyors across the country. It's a convenient way to follow Twitter feeds, sort by food type (whether, say, sweet or vegetarian), and also to give love to favorite vendo ... More >>

Nombe Scraps Late-Night Street Food, Starts Traditional Japanese Breakfast

Alan F./YelpThe restaurant has 86ed late-night weekend street sales.​Co-owner Mari Takahashi blames cold weather for lack of interest in Nombe's street-food offerings. Since opening in mid-November, she and partners Gil Payne and Nick Balla have served various Japanese take-away items from a s ... More >>

Did Carte415 Close Up Shop for Good?

J. BirdsallThe cart brought street food with a chef's touch to lunch patrons downtown.​Has downtown street-food vendor Carte415 quietly folded? SFoodie paid its last visit to the mobile kiosk in the Atrium Lobby of 101 Second St. (at Mission) a week before Thanksgiving (when we tasted the mus ... More >>

2009 Alt Foodie Trend No. 1: Coming Together to Eat

This is the last of our series counting down the top 10 alternative San Francisco food and restaurant trends of 2009. Eager to judge the flavor of the year that was? See also: No. 2: Confidence Check; No. 3: Going Primal; No. 4: Major DIY-ness; No. 5: Profit Margins Crashed; No. 6: Beer Busted Out; ... More >>

Doggy Bag: Why S.F. Street Food Won't Be All Washed Up in 2010

Doug ZimmermanMagic Curry Man isn't budging.​Our favorite morsel from the blogs. Not buyin' the hate: San Francisco Cart Project's Matt Cohen takes a look at the economics of street food -- namely, at five reasons why the street food movement that hit hard here in 2009 might be expected to su ... More >>

Next Month: Sorting Out the Economics of Street Food

Steve Rhodes/FlickrScene from the S.F. Street Food Festival last August.​Street food broke hard in 2009. While carts and stands have been around since convenience became a commodity, this year saw cupcakes, curries, and fancy-pants pizzas join tamales and hot dogs on San Francisco streets, and ... More >>

2009 Alt Foodie Trend No. 9: Getting Busted

From now until Dec. 31, SFoodie is counting down the city's top alternative food and restaurant trends of 2009 -- the ones you won't be reading about in the Chron. You're welcome. Spencer BrownIn June, Sexy Soup Lady was told to get scarce.​S.F. Alt Foodie Trend No. 9: Sidewalk Shutdown So m ... More >>

Nombe's Street-Food Ramen Expands the Mission's Late-Night Offerings

Luis ChongSaturday's street-food serving of chashu kimchi ramen: Better than homemade.​If you find yourself hungry in the Mission after midnight on a Saturday ― just like we were last weekend ― your options are no longer limited to a few taquerias. Now you can add ramen to your short list ... More >>

Commonwealth Club Panel on S.F. Street Food Now on Video

In October, SFoodie's Tamara Palmer moderated a panel at the Commonwealth Club of diverse cooks with something to say about street food, pop-ups, and the new cart scene that helped define life in the Mission during the summer of '09. Last week, the Commonwealth Club released video of the discussion, ... More >>

At the Commonwealth Club Last Night, a Diverse Panel Chews on Street Food's Challenges

m. BrodyMission Street Food's Anthony Myint (left) with Magic Curry Kart's Brian Kimball.​A full house celebrated San Francisco's street-food scene at last night's panel discussion at the Commonwealth Club, The Street Food Movement: SF Hearts the Cart, moderated by SFoodie blogger Tamara Palme ... More >>

'Free Murat': Vendors Urge Show of Support for Amuse Bouche at Tonight's Street-Food Party

Feel free to customize.​This afternoon, Steven Gdula of Gobba Gobba Hey was urging fellow street-food vendors to show support for Amuse Bouche vendor Murat Celebi-Ariner at tonight's post-Commonwealth Club street food party at 111 Minna Gallery by wearing t-shirts that read "Free Murat." Murat ... More >>

Mu Shu Tacos and Nacho Sundaes: Only at Candybar's Happy Hour

T. PalmerCandybar's Nacho Sundae: Papaya, mango, kiwi, cilantro, avocado yogurt, candied jalapeño, horchata ice cream.​Kung Fu Tacos, the Pan-Asian taco truck serving the lunch crowd at Montgomery and Sacramento streets in the Financial District, now motors over to Candybar (1335 Fulton at Divisa ... More >>

Don't Forget: Commonwealth Club's Look at S.F. Street Food is This Thursday

markevnic72/FlickrIt was the summer of love for S.F.'s food carts.​A reminder: SFoodie's Tamara Palmer is moderating a panel of high- and low-end contributors to S.F.'s street food scene this Thursday at the Commonwealth Club's The Street Food Movement: SF Hearts the Cart. Speakers range from ... More >>

Bacon Potato Chips: Now Just a Few Clicks Away

Alexandra Restrepo​Who's Your Daddy? handmade bacon potato chips, a staple of the local street-food scene, recently improved its recipe by using a thicker ridge cut from russets rather than the thinner cut from  Kennebecs that was previously in the bag. Just in time, too, for WYD bacon potato ... More >>

The Commonwealth Club Goes All Street-y Later This Month with Panel Talk

​Not too long ago, the city's street food offerings caught the attention of late-night borrachos fixing for bacon-wrapped hot dogs, hammered Zeitgeist hipsters heeding the arrival of the Tamale Lady, and hopeful day laborers with an appetite. Later this month, street food becomes the subject o ... More >>

S.F. Street-Food Vendor Adobo Hobo a Big Deal on Filipino TV, Sort Of

The city's growing cluster of once-hidden street-food vendors are only partly underground these days, especially after recent exposure at the Bay Area's jammed-to-capacity street-food festivals. But following recent appearances on Filipino TV, one pushcart seller may have left DL status permanently ... More >>

Doggy Bag: Today's Odds and Ends

​Our favorite morsel from the food blogs. Realness on a stick: Bay Area Bites' Thy Tran serves up the most thoughtful take on street food we've seen in a long time. Sure, we can all feel glow-y for August's street food fests, but what would it take to build the teeming, vibrant vendor culture ... More >>

Early Bird Special: Poleng Lounge

J. BirdsallLuym, grilling up goodness at the S.F. Street Food Festival.​An early nibble from the Weekly's Wednesday food review. Seems that some chefs are born fierce, while others (credit changing tastes, the alignment of the planets, whatever) have fierceness thrust upon them. That second ... More >>

Doggy Bag: Today's Odds and Ends

​Our favorite morsels form the food blogs and beyond. Top-tier employment: NBC Bay Area's Sajid Farooq files a depressing story about a couple of recent assaults on street-food vendors in Salinas. On Monday, two pushcart ice cream hawkers --- a 36-year-old and a 64-year-old - were pepper-spra ... More >>

Unlicensed Vendor Detained at Saturday's Street Food Festival

Vendor "Luke" (in glasses) surrounded by police officers Saturday.​At the San Francisco Street Food Festival Saturday, police shut down and threatened to cite a street food vendor -- an ironic turn of events for a day devoted in part to educating attendees about the difficulties of becoming a ... More >>

Doggy Bag: Today's Odds and Ends

​Our favorite morsels from the food blogs and beyond. Growler: Beer & Nosh whips out predictably gorge photos from Saturday's street-food fest, with a harsh chaser: It was crowded, expensive, and with long lines for food that wasn't exactly street food. Ouch. Yupset: An extra helping of Stre ... More >>

Eat Fries, Feel Good -- Like, Really Good

hyunbum84/FlickrGo on -- do it out of altruism.​If the idea of eating delish fries, crêpes, salads, or mussels and drinking Belgian beer in a sexy setting while supporting a local food organization sounds good, consider a seat at Frjtz Fries Valencia on Wednesday, August 19. That's the night ... More >>

Underground Street-Food Vendor Toasty Melts All Fired Up About Grilled Cheese

romanlily/FlickrNo, this isn't a Toasty Melts sandwich, but you get the idea.​Get ready to add grilled cheese to the city's growing roster of underground street foods. Toasty Melts is hoping to hit the pavement next Friday, August 21st, offering as many as four varieties of warm, melty goodnes ... More >>

Are the Mission's New Street-Food Carts the True Heirs of Slow Food?

J. Birdsall A serving from Adobo Hobo: Accessible and easy to like.It was a few minutes before 7:30 last Friday night, at an undisclosed location in the Mission. The patch of grass before us would soon coalesce into a de facto market of underground street food: Magic Curry, Adobo Hobo, Gobba ... More >>

'Go Game Street Food Adventure' Open to Couch Potatoes

Veggie buns from Heaven's Dog will be featured at SF Street Food Festival.​As street food fervor rages on in the city, the time is ripe for a scavenger hunt. 'Go Game Street Food Adventure' is a challenge that begins on August 1, hosted by La Cocina in advance of the San Francisco Street Food Fest ... More >>

Street-Food Video Takes a Sip of Blue Bottle Coffee, Talks Pee in Linden Street

National street-food chronicler VendrTV was in town sampling java at the Blue Bottle kiosk in Hayes Valley, and has just posted the video. Lovably geeky host Daniel Delaney shares a cup with Facebook's Dave Morin (something brainy about the intersection of street food and social networking), and cha ... More >>

State of the Cart

Join us as we map the street food scene and find out why there aren't more vendors in this most food-involved and temperate of cities.

Will Blog For Frozen, Junk Food -- Did I Mention Gummy Candy?

Best Potato Chips

Grand Cafe

Best Bar Snack

Potato Chips at LiveFire