At People & Food, our goal is to change where folks choose to eat. Away from the chains and VC-backed restaurants that most publications and influencers are covering, and towards the small eateries and mom-and-pop businesses that we all love and want to preserve.
Our list of pop-ups and events is curated with that mission in mind. If you see an event that deserves a mention and aligns with our mission, please drop us a line and we’d be happy to add it.
This will be a monthly column, and we’ll update it as we learn of more events. Thanks for your support. - Rob, Angela, Sangita and Alexa
Summer is giving way to fall, and September is shaping up to be an exciting month for food enthusiasts in New York. Our calendars are overflowing with exciting events over Labor Day Weekend — and that’s just the first weekend of the month! Here is a curated list of food events for those who care just as much about the people and culture behind a dish as the food itself.
A Rare Chance to Eat Lao Food in NYC
There is a dearth of Lao restaurants in New York City, but once a month, a lovely couple drives up from Virginia to visit their daughter, and the family invites you to the table to feast. I had the chance to try the bright, zesty flavors of Tham Mak Hoong (Lao papaya salad) and the spicy smokiness of the handmade Sai Oua (Lao herbal beef sausage), and can’t wait to go back! - Angela
When: September 4, 5PM—10PM; September 5 & 6, 2PM—8PM
Where: Lise & Vito (📍 126A Nassau Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11222)
How to Attend: Just pull up.
Astoria’s First Ever Brasil Fest
31st Ave Open Street, Astoria’s volunteer-run public space on 31st Ave from 33rd to 35th Street, will be hosting its first ever Brazilian Independence Day Festival with vendors selling traditional foods and artisanal goods from across Brazil.
When: September 5, 2PM—7PM
Where: 31st Ave Open Street (📍 34-02 31st Ave, Astoria, NY 11106)
How to Attend: Just pull up.
Seafood and Sungolds
Burnt Orange Honey is launching a brand new supper club in collaboration with Chef Dan Mollitor, and “Italian comfort foods with a fine dining edge” are on the menu. From Instagram: “It’ll be a beautiful bon voyage to summer and celebration of a very special ingredient”
Five courses. BYOB. Somewhere in Fort Greene.
When: September 4, 7:30PM—10PM
Where: Location TBD (somewhere in Fort Greene)
How to Attend: Get your tickets here
Can I get a Chinese Cheeseburger?
From Instagram: “Mr. Jong was born as a homage to the lowkey brilliance of Americanized Chinese fast food - our ancestors adapted flavors of homeland to an American palate - and built homes then families then stability for the next generations to flourish (thats us!). What better vehicle to show this off than a mf Chinese Cheeseburger???”
When: September 4, 4PM—10PM (or sold out!)
Where: Little Island (📍 Pier 55 at Hudson River Park, Hudson River Greenway, New York, NY 10014)
How to Attend: RSVP here for event updates
¡Carne Asada y Pachanga!
Our favorite nixtamalized tortilla taqueria is popping up and popping off at Upstate kombucha shop Yesfolk. From Instagram: “They’ll be keeping the kombucha flowing, we’ll be keeping the tacos coming, and trust us when we say the two make a pretty damn good pair.”
Read more about Los Hermosos, one of very few molinos in New York in Alexa’s article below, and then go taste their tortillas made from fresh corn masa for yourself!
How we nearly lost traditional Mexican masa
Thanks for reading People & Food. Today’s deeply-researched piece is written by Alexa Calderón, who spent a great deal of time tracking down every person in New York who makes masa from scratch—from street vendors and tamaleros to tortillerias and Michelin-starred restaurants. This is a living guide to the people who are preserving the tradition of nixtamalization in New York, amidst a larger story of why this renaissance is occurring in the first place.
When: September 5, 4PM—7PM (or sold out)
Where: Yesfolk Tonics (📍 1467 5th Ave, Troy, NY 12180)
How to Attend: Just pull up.
An Apple a Day…
Because nothing screams fall like apple-picking in the Hudson Valley.
From Instagram: “ORCHARD TOURS ARE BACK!!! Join us for a guided tour of our 2-acre Ancram, New York orchard featuring over 150 rare, unique and historically significant apple varieties. Each ticket includes 5 pounds of apples, picked during the tour. Some of the unique varieties we grow include Pitmaston Pineapple, Kandil Sinap, Black Oxford, Hidden Rose, Niedzwetzkyana, Sweet 16, Frostbite, Lincolnville Russet, Kidd's Orange Red, Red Devil and Garden Royal.”
When: Saturdays in September, 2PM; starting September 5
Where: Hudson Valley Apple Project (📍 1066 County Rte 27a, Ancram, NY 12502)
How to Attend: Book your orchard tour here.
A New Bodega is Born
Bánh xèo. Viet coffee. Bánh bò. Need we say more?
When: September 5 & 6, 11AM—4PM
Where: 📍 117 Grattan St, Brooklyn, NY 11237
How to Attend: RSVP here.
Un Verano en Nueva Yolk
I’ll never forget the first time I tried lucuma at a local market in Lima. I had never experienced such a rich flavor and custardy texture in a fruit before. It makes perfect sense as a frozen treat, and Pri Aguilar has captured its essence beautifully with their ice cream brand Nueva Yolk, which honors the flavors of the LATAM + Carribean diaspora.
Their first drop also features the flavors of charred summer corn and huacatay, a fragrant Peruvian herb also known as black mint. - Angela
When: September 6, 12PM—4PM
Where: Nimbus (📍 383 Bridge St, Brooklyn, NY 11201)
How to Attend: Reserve here.
Little Island, Big Names in Baking
Some of the city’s biggest names in baking are participating in Our Little Bake Sale, a fundraiser hosted by pastry chef Natasha Pickowicz. All proceeds from the bake sale go directly to Make The Road NY, a Queens-based non-profit that builds the power of immigrant and working class communities across NYC.
When: September 6, 3PM—5PM
Where: Little Island (📍 Pier 55 at Hudson River Park, Hudson River Greenway, New York, NY 10014)
How to Attend: Buy your tickets here. One $10 ticket = one baked good.
From Bengal to Brooklyn
This Labor Day weekend, celebrate Bengal at Barzakh, from Bangladeshi barbecue to a documentary screening of a dream called khushi about the Rohingya exodus to a performance to a live performance by local band Teentara featuring a guest sitarist. Nostalgic snacks served throughout the evening!
When: September 6, 2PM—8PM
Where: Barzakh Cafe (📍 147 Utica Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11213)
How to Attend: RSVP here.
Palestinian BBQ for the Olive Harvest
From Instagram “We are throwing a good ole fashioned Palestinian-Lebanese mashawi cookout! All proceeds supporting @faz3a_pal’s efforts during the upcoming olive harvest in Palestine.”
When: September 7, 2PM—Sold out
Where: Sauced (📍 331 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211)
How to Attend: Just pull up.
Black Tradition Meets Kashmiri Flavor
From Instagram: “in my family, we love us a summer cookout. and what better way to pay homage to my heritage than to remix a few cookout and wazwan classics?”
When: September 7, 5PM—9PM
Where: Wadadli (📍 419 Putnam Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11216)
How to Attend: RSVP here.
Korean x Filipino Kamayan
For one night, Chef Anton Dayrit of Tradicionale and Chef Jae Lee of Nowon are coming together to bring the culinary traditions of their respective cultures to the table, creating a true fusion of flavors served Kamayan-style.
When: September 9, 5PM
Where: Tradicionale (📍 156 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011)
How to Attend: RSVP here.
Royal Bengal Motor Club & Friends
From Instagram: “RBMC is extremely honored to present our all Bengali all star vendors for our first ever pop up. With Bengali snacks, desserts, drinks, clothing Henna, jewelry, and prints all done by Bengali artists. And a suprise fusion Bengali Onigiri with our good friends from @myrtlewombat and @stovetopsaj”
When: September 12, 1PM—6PM
Where: Myrtle Wombat (📍 581 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11205)
How to Attend: Just pull up.
Cookies from “The Town of Tea”
Ceon, a baker from Nishio, Japan is popping up at Land to Sea for one day only. Nishio is famously known as “the town of tea,” and Ceon is bringing that heritage to Brooklyn with a lineup of cookies featuring specialty matcha sourced straight from home.
When: September 12, 11AM—1PM
Where: Land To Sea (📍 402 Graham Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211 )
How to Attend: Just pull up.
A Momo Crawl and an Urgent Plea
Jackson Heights’ annual momo crawl is back for its 14th year with over 30 Tibetan and Nepali vendors serving $1 momo samples.
On a more somber note, the organizers have recently put out a call for donations to the Tibet-Nepal Border Relief efforts following the devastating landslide and floods in the region. Please consider contributing to the relief drive here.
When: September 13, 12PM—5PM
Where: Diversity Plaza (📍 73-19 37th Rd, Jackson Heights, NY 11372)
How to Attend: Get your passport here.
Cheese Omakase? Sounds Gouda!
12 courses of cheese. Need I say more?
When: September 20, 6PM—9:30PM
Where: Frank’s House (📍 133 Clinton Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11205)
How to Attend: RSVP here.
That’s it for now. We will be adding more events to this list throughout the month so be sure to subscribe and follow us on Instagram so you never miss an update!
I don’t live in NYC but your enthusiasm for your local scene feeds mine for montréal’s. I love reading about these happy little spots of people coming together