HELL'S KITCHEN — Good food will once again roll into Hell's Kitchen this summer with the popular Gourmet Food Truck Bazaar returning to the Hell's Kitchen Flea Market on Sunday.
The food fest will give locals in the neighborhood the chance to chow down on a special menu of kobe burgers on brioche rolls, spiced pork tenderloin sauteed with kimchi and even tangy citrus slushes.
Founded last year after cops began to crack down on food trucks in the area, the bazaar aims to bring the city's top gourmet food trucks together in one place for curious eaters.
The bazaar kicks off on Sunday at the corner of West 39th Street and Ninth Avenue and will run every second Sunday of the month through October.
"We were the first one to step up to the plate to give them an alternative to the street," said Alan Boss, founder of the Flea Market.
"Now that the street is limited to them, we’re still doing it, and we’re glad that we initiated it."
This weekend's assortment of mobile kitchens includes the Red Hook Lobster Pound, the Kimchi Taco Truck, Frites 'n Meats, Taim Mobile and Kelvin Natural Slush.
The variety of trucks will change every month, but already on the roster are the Milk Truck, Big D's Grub Truck, Cupcake Crew and Schnitzel and Things.
The bazaar will kick off with a contest on Twitter and Facebook where entrants can win a free gourmet food-truck tasting at any culinary truck of their choice.
Last year, the event was a resounding success, with hundreds of customers coming each weekend. That's caused the event to grow, and Boss said he's been flooded with requests from trucks wanting a spot.
"It's been great, they love it and we love it," he said.
Boss' organization, which also runs the Antiques Garage and the West 25th Street Market, charges the trucks a fee to park at the bazaar. The group could not specifically say how much they charge, but said they worked out deals with vendors who plan to come multiple times a summer.
The location of the trucks gives them an opportunity to serve an untapped market — the far western portions of Hell's Kitchen often don't have quite the food traffic or empty parking spaces needed to run a food truck.
"It's definitely something that's still very new to Hell's Kitchen," said Tatiana Sy, who helps organize the bazaar.
"It's not often that you see a food truck here, so it's a nice way to get them our way."
The Hell's Kitchen Flea Market Gourmet Food Truck Bazaar runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on April 22, then every second Sunday through October.
