Think Beyond Cotton Candy with New York’s Most Unique Eats on a Stick
From carnival perennials like cotton candy and corn dogs, to flowers fashioned from mangos and sold along the beach, a multitude of summer’s preeminent foods are speared on sticks. And in NYC, that formidable lineup even includes sugar-encased bacon courtesy of Landhaus, as well as fork-free chicken and waffles, at Cuban-cum-Mexican Cafe Habana & more…
Dominique Ansel Bakery
The inimitable Dominique Ansel operates exclusively out of the box, which is why you’ve never experienced anything like his s’mores, whilst sitting around a campfire. It starts with squares of honey-sweetened housemade marshmallow that are molded around cubes of chocolate feuilletine-coated vanilla custard and frozen overnight. They’re propped applewood-smoked sticks, and then torched to order, forming an addictive, crème brulee-esque crust.
Read MoreSen Sakana
Being devoted to Nikkei cuisine (a mash-up of Peruvian and Japanese culinary traditions) means that this long-awaited eatery really doubles down on skewered foods. Look for a lineup of robata-grilled Kushiyaki, with significant South American flair; we’re talking about Mini Tomatoes wrapped in pork belly, the black feather chicken meatballs known as Tsukune, Jalapeno Queso Cremoso (peppers stuffed with Peruvian cheese), and Japanese Sweet Potatoes slicked in aji amarillo butter.
Read MoreLlama Inn
While traditionally comprised of beef heart and other inexpensive organ meats, the Peruvian antichuchos at the ever buzzy (and totally tasty) Llama Inn run the gamut from char siu pork belly with pickled chilies, to chicken thigh with fermented soy beans and potato chips, and octopus stained with aji amarillo, and accompanied by tidbits of cabbage and quinoa.
Read MoreHanjan
Hooni Kim offers Korean-style chicken skewers at Hanjan; his ode to traditional jamook (taverns). Carved from La Pera’s fresh-killed, Amish-raised poultry, you can order breast, thigh and gizzard (not to mention heart, skin and oyster meat) simply grilled with salt and pepper and served with ssam-jung and scallion salad, or gussied up with spicy gochujang, soy-garlic glaze, or jalapeno gremolata.
Read MoreCafé Habana
In addition to their iconic elote (skewered, caramelized corn cobs tumbled in mayo, lime juice and cotija cheese), this Cuban-Mexican cantina is known for “Roscoe on a Stick,” essentially a chicken and waffle popsicle served with a side dish of syrup.
Read MoreLandaus
This longtime vendor effortlessly cut through the Smorgasburg noise by selling stubs of brown sugar and herb-roasted slab bacon on a stick, which they also happen to peddle all week round at Smorg’s brick-and-mortar spinoff, Berg’n -– talk about the ultimate bar snack.
Read MoreTurntable
K-Town is known for fried chicken, and you won’t be disappointed at the quirky, LP-collecting, karaoke-playing fun-house, Turntable. But “Twisters” have quickly emerged as their signature dish; think deep-fried, spiralized potato skins, mounted on a stick and smothered with spicy sauce.
Read MoreSteve’s Authentic Key Lime Pies
While pie is generally a fork-centric endeavor, no sitting down is required when it comes to Steve’s ingenious Swingles. Forged from one of his justifiably famous pies (one of only two that uses actual key lime juice in the U.S.), these glorious, stick-propped pops are plunged in chocolate and frozen, creating the ultimate summertime sweet.
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