Mr. Okra is "an intimate look at one of New Orleans' most colorful characters, the charismatic vegetable salesman 'Mr. Okra,' who provides a glimpse into the soul of an American city." The charming portrait is on YouTube as part of the Sundance Film Festival's YouTube Screening Room. Video, after the jump.... More

[Photograph: Punxatawneyphil on Flickr] The New York Times has a quick piece on Berlin's grillwalkers, who sell sausages from portable grills that they wear—gas on the back; hot, hot bratfest on the front. The innovative apparatus sprang up in 1997, when inventor Bertram Rohloff devised it as a way of skirting city street-vendor permits in the city. Without permits, "neither the grill nor the sausages could touch the ground." As he worked on the invention, Mr. Rohloff considered everything from burning charcoal to hooking the grill up to a car battery — which he rejected because it would run down in just 10 minutes — before settling on propane. He designed it with an automatic cut-off mechanism for the... More

[Flickr: capndesign] I spied this photo of Seattle's Maximus Minimus pig truck on my friend Matty's Flickr account. The menu there seems pretty simple: pork or vegetable sandwich with various add-ons (Beecher's handmade cheese, slaw, chips). Sounds delicious. I'm hungry. [Note to Erin: I think these folks should be our next Street Food Profile.]... More

Note: Since this street food trend is getting a little out of control, we're going to spend every Monday getting to know different vendors from all over. This week in Street Food Profiles, we scoot to Portland. [Dave Seldom] Name: Brunch Box Vendors: Ryan Incles and Ariana Berry Location and hours: Downtown Portland on SW 5th Avenue in a parking lot between Stark and Oak. Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. What's on the menu? Breakfast sandwiches, hot dogs, and burgers—some of which are strange. How many years have you been street-fooding? Since March 2, 2009, so 0.475 years. Is that right?... More

Note: Since this street food trend is getting a little out of control, it's time we get to know the vendors behind it all. Today we're kicking off a weekly series that will profile street vendors from across the country. First up, the Food Shark in a little town in West Texas. Name: Food Shark Vendors: Krista Steinhauer (chef) and Adam Bork (art director, mechanic, food prep, and cashier extraordinaire) Location and hours? Center of town in Marfa, Texas, on Tuesdays through Friday for lunch between 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Marfalafel What's on the menu? Falafel (or in Food Shark terms, "marfalafel"), hummus, salads, and a variety of daily specials including regional fare (like Mexican) and more How... More

posadaphoto.com "What makes taco trucks unique is the people; the people that work in them and the patrons that visit them. They bring life to streets that otherwise might be dead. The flicker of the grill, the fluorescent lights, the smell of carne asada and people gathered around food enriches the urban experience of many people in Los Angeles." —Juan Posada, taco truck photographer, in an interview on California Taco Trucks... More

At one point, it seemed insane that television screens could go into cars. But this is so much cooler than watching a movie from the backseat—in the Sweetflow Mobile, from Washington D.C.-based mini salad chain Sweet Green, you can pull down on a frozen yogurt nozzle in the backseat. (Or watch from outside as a trained nozzle-puller does it.) The mobile frozen yogurt truck was custom-built in Europe, arrived by boat, and first started roaming around the city in early June. As with other street vendors, Sweetflow Mobile is sending updated information on the truck's whereabouts via Twitter (@sweetflowmobile). Last week, it cruised by Eastern Market's grand re-opening, the 9:30 Club after a Michael Jackson tribute band played, and... More

Remember those paper dolls that you could cut out and play with? Yeah, they were a total letdown. Why would I play in 2-D when 3-D dolls existed? Well, here they are in paper taco truck form from Goopymart! There are seven different models to choose from including Senor Macho Taco (for the macho men), Yum Taco (what else do you need in a name?), and Pirate (because pirates love tacos too). I printed out and made the Kawaii model, mainly because there's a blob saying "FOOD" and "LOVE" on the side. I mean if I had my own truck, this is basically what it would look like, give or take a few unicorns and sparkles. Related Video: Los... More

Global Street Food, an exhibition curated by Mike Meiré, features the accoutrements of various "improvised kitchens" from around the world, like this coffee cart from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Set up as works of art in a gallery, they're almost indistinguishable from sculptures like Marcel Duchamp's readymades—especially "Grill," from Kampala, Uganda (third photo). The exhibit is on display until July 12 at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany. [via Kottke]... More

On the latest episode of VendrTV, host Dan Delaney visits the Nuevo Mexico cart in Portland, Oregon, owned by Jesse Sandoval, former drummer of indie rock band The Shins. Using what he learned from growing up with his family's food cart, today Sandoval specializes in New Mexican cuisine, in particular sopaipillas (fried dough) stuffed with meat, beans, cheese, and green chile. There's also an appearance from former keyboardist of The Shins, Martin Crandall. Watch the video after the jump.... More