by Jon Lomow

I’m impressed by the longevity of The Wig’s Street Food Petition on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks to everyone who has “liked” and re-tweeted. We’ve broken the 500 mark and are taking aim at 1,000 names. Clearly there is pent-up desire in Ottawa for more diverse street food. Haven’t signed it yet? Go here now.

Now Bite This

Donna Kyd is Ottawa’s street food pioneer, and a stifled but inspiring example of what Ottawa’s street food could be.

Kyd has been at it since the 1980s — well before the City of Ottawa stopped allowing new street cart permits. She started in the early days serving sausages from a BBQ cart in the Glebe (hamburgers are permitted only if you have a truck). But Kyd’s ambitions went well beyond sausages, and she eventually took the plunge and acquired a swanky food trailer from a manufacturer in Florida, which she figured could be plopped in a private parking lot and operated just like a restaurant.

The problem for Kyd quickly became: Where in Ottawa do you stick a restaurant kitchen on wheels when City bylaws aren’t equipped to deal with it? Not to mention, paying 10 times the amount a restaurant would pay for a permit, while also having to pay rent to a private landlord. After much searching, the answer was found at Scott Street at Tweedsmuir (near Trailhead) on the outskirts of Westboro. A year later, awareness of Kyd’s fringe location is growing steadily.

Bite This has something for everyone: burgers and sausages for those looking for traditional chip wagon fare; curries, noodles and other daily items for those looking for more. The word is getting out about Kyd’s “Thai-One-On” take on pad thai. And the word is right — it could be this city’s best.

Kelp Records goes to market

It’s Kelp Records’ 17^th anniversary party May 5 to 7, and TheWig.ca will be joining forces with the local label to present the first ever Kelp Weekend Flea and Food Market. Food vendors will be showcasing what could one day be served on the streets of Ottawa, and will include The Whalesbone, Pascale’s All Natural Ice Cream, The Black Cat and others. (Stay tuned.) The Market will take place Saturday, May 7, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. More on this next week.

And, yes, a contest

We’re also launching a little contest to go along with our street food petition. You are encouraged to submit a photo (or Google Streetview) embellished with a bit of creative touch-up, the image doctored so as to portray what street food vendors and public eating areas might look like in our public spaces. (See example, above.)

Visit the contest page for more details.