Ready for Madison Square Eats 2015? Here’s What to Expect Bleecker April 2, 2015 Essential Guides, Events, Featured, Food Types, Hot Spots, NYC Experiences Once upon a time, Madison Square Park was as unsavory a pass-through site as you could hope to find in the city. If you passed through it, you passed through it during the day, and only to get from the Flatiron building on 23rd Street to the other side of the park heading uptown, or vice versa. Most times, though, people just avoided it. It was ugly, literally and figuratively. What is Madison Square Eats? A Shake Shack opening and a years-long city revitalization later, and this celebrated park is now anything but unsavory. In fact, people flock here from all over to discover some of the most savory treats in all of NYC-land. One of the most popular foodie events taking place here is the Madison Square Eats festival. A gastronomical extravaganza that takes over Madison Square Park several times a year, this festival continues to establish Madison Square Park as an innovative, exciting place for New Yorkers and others on the lookout for new discoveries. Put together by UrbanSpace and the Madison Square Park Conservancy, Madison Square Eats offers an opportunity for established restaurants and food vendors to attract new customers while offering newer vendors the opportunity to make a name for themselves. A photo posted by EatUpNewYork.com (@eatupnewyork) on Sep 17, 2014 at 6:47pm PDT Who Are Some of the Entrants? Uma Temakeria: Brazil’s love affair with Japanese food has made its way to New York via Chef Chris Jaeckle’s new “fast-food sushi spot”, Uma Temakeria. Madison Square Eats goers will be able to feast on delectable hand rolls that may become the food that replaces your Chipotle for lunch. People’s Pops: Luscious, locally sourced fruits and herbs plus three passionate folks equals People’s Pops, an ice pop company thats become a city favorite. From Chelsea Market to the Brooklyn Flea, this pop-up popsicle shop can be found all over the city. With flavors like the sweetly spicy strawberry ginger and grape lemonade shaved ice, you’ll probably find it hard to resist on a warm spring day. Macaron Parlour: Once an exotic pastry, macarons are everywhere in NYC. What sets Macaron Parlour apart from the rest of the pack are the mind-bogglingly unlikely yet delicious flavors that the shop offers. What flavors, you ask? Candied Bacon with Maple Cream Cheese. Cheetos flavored macacron made out of Cheetos (yes, we said Cheetos) that have been crushed and infused with white chocolate ganache and cheese dust? And yes, they’ve got strawberry, and you’re probably like, whatever, strawberry. But their strawberry is laced through with chocolate ganache. Bombay Sandwich Company: The husband-and-wife team behind this new entrant at Madison Square Eats birthed their company out of their desire to find healthy, delicious easy-to-make and go food that tasted good and was good for you. Born at the Smorgasburg Food Festival in 2012 before moving to Chelsea, the Bombay Sandwich Company offers incredibly tasty sandwiches like the chana masala sandwich, a feast of savory chick peas that have been simmered in a slow cooker before being topped off with a sweet-spicy date chutney, pickled onions and all served on a ciabatta roll.Other offerings like the kale-sweet potato wrap and the organic quinoa salad will help ensure that the Bombay Sandwich Company stall stays busy the length of Madison Square Eats. When Does Madison Square Eats Take Place? The next Madison Square Eats Festival starts on Friday, May 1, 2015 and ends on Thursday, May 28, 2015. Bring a doggie bag.
