[Warning, this post is image heavy!]

This past weekend was the Vendy Awards on Governer’s Island in NY. I love the Vendy’s. I went for the first time in 2014 when I won VIP tickets, and I’ve been going (VIP style) ever since. The Vendy Awards celebrate, support, and bring awareness to street vendors and their struggles.

I highly recommend attending the Vendy’s, and really suggest getting early bird VIP tickets. Perks of the VIP tickets include, getting in an hour before general admission opens, a swag bag full of goodies, open bar, and shaded seating area. Getting in as early as possible is essential because the lines get LONG.

The  first thing I tried was Raindrop Cake. The black cane sugar and blueberry lavender were vegan. I was excited about trying it since it’s described as a ‘raindrop made for your mouth’. It was really interesting – in a good way. It was sweet and melted in your mouth. Both syrups were good, and I liked the black can sugar the best.

Next up was Monk’s Meats and the best word to describe their sliders is “wow”. Their seitan is absolutely incredible. I can’t even put into words how good their food was and I’m more than a little upset that I can’t eat it on a regular basis. The  Bulgogi was my favorite since it had a spicy Gochujang mayo that was out of this world, but they were all so delicious. I would give just about anything to get my hands on their seitan recipe.

Next stop was Yeah Dawg, another all vegan vendor that I was super excited about. I got the Viva Dawg and my mom got the Bulldawg. The coconut bacon and chipotle mayo were perfect.We loved them, and my only regret was not going back for seconds to try the other kinds.

The dogs were really, really good. They’re made out of normal ingredients, root veggies, sunflower seeds, gluten free flour, and herbs and spices. These tasted better than any “real” hot dog I’ve ever had.

At this point, I was already started to feel a tiny bit stuffed, and there were still so many vendors to try. Sweetface Snoballs was next to Yeah Dawg and serves up New Orleans style snoballs. Only one of the three flavors they had didn’t have dairy in it, so I went with that one, the Nola Voodoo. It was really rich and sweet. There was a always a huge line through out the day and I can understand why, it was a perfect delicious treat on a beautiful day. For some reason I didn’t snap a photo of my snoball – probably because I was too busy eating it. 

The Jerk Shack was right next to the snoballs, so my mom and I each got a plate of their offerings. They offered very generous portions of their authentic Caribbean cuisine and they were both delicious.

There was a mixture of types of trucks that I could eat at, some were 100% vegan, others were in the vegan category that normally serve both vegan and non vegan food, then there were non vegan trucks that specially made some vegan dishes even though it wasn’t their norm.

Los Viojeros had a veggie option, and they were nice enough to make me a special dish that didn’t have the cheese or aioli. The plantains, peppers and onions were a nice combo, and I thought it was really nice of them to make me something separate. 

Bamboo Bites was another vendor in the vegan category. They had two sticky rice options, one with mango and the other with tofu in a peanut sauce.  They were both really good. I always love mango sticky rice, and the tofu in peanut sauce was really tasty. Again, I kind of failed on the photo front here. Too busy stuffing things in my mouth to get a good photo I guess!

There’s a general admission bar (above) and a VIP bar (below).

I got a Mediterranean Mule – Figenza Fig Vodka, Ginger Beer, and Lime Juice. I can’t even remember the last time I had vodka or any kind of hard liquor (seriously like 2 or 3 years ago on New Years Eve), but I love figs, so I got one and wow, was it good.  I tried the whiskey and learned that I’m not a whiskey person. They also had gin and tonics, but since I don’t like gin, I just got a tonic water.
Another vegetarian vendor that went out of their way to be vegan friendly was Matzahbrei. I loved their sign “All Vegetarian – *Make it vegan (Just ask the guy)”. I asked for a vegan Yannis, and waited with a few other vegans for them to make it fresh. I was a little unsure of the beets, mint, and tahini combo, but it was REALLY good. At this point I was starting to really feel the mass amounts of food I had eaten, but I would’ve gone back and asked for more if I had the stamina.  Also major thanks for making a special vegan option!

A sponsor, Casper, had nap pods with their mattresses. I didn’t try it out, but it looked…interesting.

Another sponsor was Uprooted. I got a pretty silk flower crown. From now on, I will only be referred to as Sunflower Moon Goddess whenever I wear it! When I first walked through, I missed Mysttik Masaala, which was was very unfortunate because their food was incredible. I know I’ve pretty much said that about everyone, but all of these guys are the best of the best. I tried the red bean, potatoes, and spinach dishes. At this point I was taking a couple bites, walking around, taking a few more bites…because I was so full. But it was SO good.  And spicy. And I could really go for more right now.
The coveted Vendy Cup!

I picked up a tshirt.
We had skipped over Tuson Sate originally because we wanted to try all the vegan stuff first and got pretty full pretty fast. Towards the end of the day I noticed they had a tempeh option and gave it a try. They asked if I wanted it vegan (seriously blows my mind when someone asks without me saying it first) and they had separate tempeh that they served up. It was good and some of the best tempeh I’ve had.

A few hours in, they were all out of water … and soda … and seltzer, so I got a beer.

There was a huge crowd for the awards ceremony. There were two guest vegan judges, Adam Sobel of the Cinnamon Snail and Chloe Coscarelli – basically my two celebrity vegan idols.  I really wanted to get photos with them, but I didn’t see them walking around.

Monk’s Meats won the People’s Choice award, and Mysttik Masaala won Judge’s choice in the vegan category. In past years, there was usually one stray vegan vendor in each category, so it was easy to know who to vote for, but this year having a devoted category it was so hard! Each of them were incredible and it was great having different kinds of foods.

After stuffing my face as much as possible, I walked around the island a little bit (but apparently not far enough because somehow I missed The Hills). I LOVE Governer’s Island. I love the architecture of the historic buildings, I love the views of Manhattan, I love all of the art exhibits.

On the day of the Vendy’s, it was also World War I Doughboy Day. I was lucky enough to catch the last performance of ‘Eugene Bullard, America’s first black fighter pilot’ portrayed by actor Chadd Gray. It was informative and captivating. The actor did such a wonderful job of really honoring Bullard and bringing his legend to life.

Overall, it was a beautiful day and a beautiful event. Everything was organized really well (except for running out of water), and I cannot wait for next year. Please have a vegan category always!!