Author Archives: Vincent Salerno

Hot Dog Carts in New York City

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Two weeks ago, I did research on hot dog carts in New York City. Hot dog carts can be traced all the way back to the late 19th century and early 20th century. I discovered that in the 1870s, a man by the name of Charles Feltman opened up his Ocean pavilion beer garden located in Coney Island. Later on, a young employee of Charles named Nathan Handwerker opened up his own hot dog stand, and he sold his hot dogs at a cheaper price of 5 cents a hot dog. Nathan’s hot dog stand grew into a multimillion dollar business and his hot dog stand located in Coney Island continues to sell more than a million hot dogs a year. When I visit New York City, I always get a hot dog from these food carts. These boiled hot dogs are the most delicious hot dogs that I have ever eaten. Now, hot dog vendors have started to change;  these vendors now sell new types of hot dogs and foods such as halal. The new type of hot dog that people in New York City are now raving about are grilled ones. Many people in New York are looking for healthier food options for themselves and their kids. This is why hot dog carts around the city are offering these new food items besides unhealthy pretzels and boiled hot dogs. The hot dog stand is a well suited symbol to represent the cuisine of New York City. The hot dog stand business has changed dramatically over the past twenty years and who knows how it will evolve and change in the near future.

 

Oxfam American Hunger Banquet

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Last week, my classmates and I attended the Oxfam American Hunger Banquet that was held at Wagner College. When my class walked into the teachers’ dining hall, we were all assigned to different seats. Some students were assigned to a table that had salads, pitchers of soda, and glass plates. Other students were told to sit in the corner on the floor, while a few other students such as myself were assigned to sit at a table that had nothing on it. I began to become curious as to what was going on. When the banquet began, I found out that my table represented the middle class in society, and the students who were sitting on the floor represented the lower class in society. A couple of minutes later, it was revealed that the students who were sitting at the table that had many items represented the upper class in society. That night, I learned that people in the lower class have a genuine struggle to acquire food. Many of these people do not even know when their next meal is going to be. In fact, many people in the lower class have an entire family to feed. Not having money or a plentiful amount of food resources makes it a constant struggle for these people to feed their families and themselves on a consistent basis. Throughout the banquet, some students either moved up or down the social class ladder. I learned that these changes in social class can happen at any moment in a person’s life. Just because people have wealth the majority of their lives does not mean that they will be rich for the remainder of their lives. That night, I learned that peoples’ lives can ultimately change in a matter of a day. People may be rich one day, but the next day, they could lose all of their money. As a result, these people will now struggle to feed themselves and their families. At the end of the banquet’s presentation, the students who still represented the middle class ate plain pasta and drank water from a plastic cup. The students who remained in the lower class had to eat rice and beans out of a plastic cup. The students who remained in the upper class at the end of the banquet had a feast; they ate chicken, pasta with sauce, salad, and they drank soda and water out of glass cups. The Oxfam American Hunger Banquet was truly a wonderful experience for me. I went home informed about how much people in the lower class struggle to provide food for themselves and their families, and I also went home in awe that a person could be rich or poor one day, but the next day their life can either change for better or worse.

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This was the card given to me when I arrived to the banquet.

 

Thanksgiving

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Two weeks ago, my family and I celebrated Thanksgiving with each other. Every year my family all heads over to my aunt’s house in Brooklyn to enjoy our Thanksgiving meal. Each year my family plays football at the local high school across the street from where my aunt lives. This year, my team won (just as we have done the previous two years), but I was not the most valuable player and instead my cousin received that accolade. After the game, my family all went back to my aunts house to get cleaned up. Later, while the men where downstairs, my aunt and mother would were in the kitchen preparing the Thanksgiving feast that my whole family was about to enjoy. When dinner was ready, my whole family gathered in the living room upstairs and we were all told where we would sit. Even though I am 18 years old, I still had to sit at the folding table otherwise known as the dreaded “kiddie table”. That night my aunt and mother prepared all types of food including turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, and corn bread. This year I decided to join my cousin and grab a turkey leg that was almost the size of my head. I did not show any table manners that night and I ate that turkey leg with my hands the way people during the Medieval Period would have. After eating, I went downstairs with the rest of the men in my family and we watched football together. We were all slouched on the couch and we were so tired after eating all of that delicious food. My family later went upstairs for dessert, which included a birthday cake for my cousin, as well as a strawberry cheesecake. The only part of that night that I did not enjoy was that I had to go to work later that night and I didn’t even get out of work until 3 o’clock in the morning. I am definitely looking forward to next years Thanksgiving feast with my family and hopefully I am not working that night as I did this year.

 

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This was my dish on Thanksgiving

Manipulation of Our Youth

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I recently came across a New York Times article titled “More Research Suggests Fast-Food Advertising Works on Children” by Dell’Antonia. One of the points made in this article is that when children watch more television and see more fast-food commercials, they are more likely to ask their parents to visit these fast-food chains such as Burger King and McDonald’s. Also, what makes it even worse is that the parents give into their kids and bring them to these fast-food chains. In a study conducted from 2009-2010, researchers found out that 79 percent of child-directed fast-food commercials were broadcasted on television channels such as Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, and Disney (the intended audience of these channels are pre-school kids and pre-teens). Ninety-nine percent of those commercials were from Burger King and McDonald’s alone. From my own recollection of my childhood, I remember that on a commercial break, at least three fast-food ads were shown on each of these channels. In 2006, the Council of Better Business Bureaus began the voluntary Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative (CFBAI). This initiative asked these fast-food restaurants to take a pledge to only advertise more healthy items to children and to not advertise to children under 6 years old. Sadly, only Burger King promised to not advertise to young kids. In another study, researchers discovered that many children did not remember any of the healthy foods shown in the commercials by these fast-food chains. Also, the researchers discovered that 81 percent of the 99 three to seven-year-olds in the study remembered French fries in a Burger King commercial even though apple slices were shown and French fries were not. As of 2013, Burger King has reduced its advertising to children by 50 percent. Children are easy to influence and it is not right that these fast-food chains are manipulating these weak cognitive minds just to make money. As a country, we should try to figure out a way to protect our youth. If we do not, they will continue to want fast-food more often and many years from now these children will be at a higher risk of obesity.

Here is a link to the entire article:http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/30/more-research-suggests-fast-food-advertising-works-on-children/

 

Immigrating to the United States

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A few weeks ago in my history class, I read a section of the book “97 Orchard” by Jane Ziegelman. The section that I read about contained information about the Rogarshevsky family, who were a Russian-Jewish family. This section of the book talks about the family’s immigration story and life for them on the Lower East Side in New York. The Rogarshevsky family immigrated to the United States from Telsh, Lithuania. Abraham and Fannie Rogarshevsky, their five children, along with an orphaned infant niece, sailed from Hamburg and reached Ellis Island on July 19, 1901. The family moved to 97 Orchard St. around 1908. Abraham was a presser in a garment factory and he was paid by the piece. Sadly, Mr. Rogarshevsky was diagnosed with tuberculosis and died the next year. Fannie took in boarders to support the family after her husband died and became the building janitor. She was not paid, but she did not have to pay rent to live in the building. The pushcart markets were essential to the Rogarshevsky Family and many other families living on the Lower East Side.  Pushcarts allowed these families to buy a wide variety of familiar foods at the lowest possible prices and quantities they wanted. One of the main dishes that Jewish families (like the Rogarshevsky family) ate were vegetables in the form of soup. Some of these dishes included beet, cabbage, and carrot soups. Jewish families also used beans, onions, carrots, celery and barley to make a chewy soup known as krupnik. Life in the tenement houses could be hard for many immigrant families, but they also looked out for each other. Immigrants and their neighbors took the responsibility of feeding each other; immigrants gave gifts or food to families struck by tragedies such as death and sickness. There were many windows in these tenement apartments, so many of these families had no privacy. However, this made sure that many immigrant families watch out for the other families in the building and help those families that are in need.

After reading this section of “97 Orchard”, I was reminded about my grandmother’s immigration story to the United States. In 1948 she immigrated to the United States from Italy when she was 18 years old. I love my grandmother very much and reading about this immigrant family reminds me of what my grandmother went through when she came her. My grandmother did not have much money growing up in Italy and Italy was also a dangerous place to live in because of World War II. In hope of a better life (like the Rogarshevsky and many other immigrant families) my grandmother immigrated to the United States and she raised a family in Brooklyn, New York. My grandmother did not have a easy time in the United States; she had to work long hours in a sewing factory like Abraham Rogarshevsky and she was also paid by the piece. This reading gave me a newfound love and appreciation for these immigrants and even my own grandmother. This reading allowed me to show how strong and courageous these immigrants like my grandmother were. They came to this country in search of a new life and through hard work, many of them were able to achieve success, as well as bringing their cultures to the United States.

This is a family portrait of the Rogarshevsky family.

 

This is a picture of the Jewish dish known as krupnik.

 

Exploring Sunset Park

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This semester, me and two of my classmates ventured to Sunset Park, Brooklynn and we went there to explore the neighborhood and learn its history. One of the historical landmarks that we visited was Green-Wood Cemetery; it was established in 1838 and was one of the first cemeteries in the country to have a graveyard not located at a church. It also has a great view of the city and the harbor. The next place that we visited was Brooklynn’s proclaimed ”Chinatown”. Going down 8th Avenue, we were able to see a flux of people who were of Chinese descent. There were many restaurants and small shops that sold fish, fresh fruits, and vegetables. One of the restaurants that we went to was Kai Feng Fu Dumpling House. My teacher had recommended that we visit it, and sure enough his recommendation was not disappointing. I ordered shrimp and pork dumplings and I must say that they were absolutely delicious. Lets just say that I have been having a craving for dumplings ever since I ate them and I made sure my mom ordered me more dumplings to snack on almost every week since then. Even though my project on this neighborhood is complete, I will try to visit Sunset Park more often and I can’t wait to find out what other historical aspects of the neighborhood I will learn about.

This is the beautiful entrance to Green-Wood Cemetery established in 1838.

Eating a Traditional Knish

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I recently visited Port Richmond High School, and I learned that I have been eating a certain food the wrong way my entire life. I walked into the school’s culinary kitchen and I sat down to eat the food my mentee and his classmates have prepared for my Wagner classmates and I to enjoy. One of the students brought a tray of snacks that looked delicious just from the aroma that it provided. When I asked my mentee (Erik) what they were, he said that they were just a simple knish. I was completely shocked by this; I never had eaten a knish like these before. These knishes were little potato balls made with starch and flour; they also were pointy at the top. My entire life I have been eating knishes that were flat squares and these knishes that I have been eating my whole did not even closely resemble the ones that were provided to my classmates and I that day. I had to even ask the students if these were what actual knishes looked like; sure enough, they had told me that these were traditional knishes. I was so upset that I had been eating knishes wrong my whole life! I was now so intrigued by these knishes that I just had to try them. Sure enough, these knishes were so soft and delicious. It was simple food made with flour, starch, and potatoes, but it was one of the best foods that I have eaten that whole week. What made this food even better was that I was able to eat the knishes with ketchup. I made sure when I got home that day to call out my mom and tell her that she had been giving me “fake” knishes to eat my entire life.

These are the type of flat knishes that I have been eating my entire life.

My Port Richmond High School Experience.

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The Raiders is the mascot of Port Richmond High School

Being a native of Staten Island, I am shocked that I have never visited Port Richmond High School. About two weeks ago, I had my first chance to see Port Richmond High School when my classmates and I went to the school to introduce ourselves to the students that we would be mentoring who are in the school’s culinary program. I’m not going to lie and say that I was not nervous to meet the high school student that I would eventually have to form a relationship with. I always come across as a shy and quiet person and I thought that it would be difficult for me to talk to a person that I had never even met before. Luckily, I did not have to make the first move because a student named Erik came up to me and just started to talk to me. From that point I was able to talk to him non-stop and shockingly I learned that we both have a lot in common. One of the things that I learned about Erik is that he loves to play basketball; basketball is the sport that has been a huge part of my life ever since I was three years old and I found out that Erik is trying out for the school’s basketball team. The other aspect of our lives that we have in common is that we both want to work in the medical field when we are older. I told Erik that I was going to school to become a nurse and he told me that his dream was to get into John Hopkins University’s medical program; he also told me that if he could not achieve this, he would be satisfied going to a different school that would help him further his education and push him to strive for success. Even though he is just a sophomore, hopefully I will be able to give him advice about what it takes to get into college and how to manage his time once he is in college. I can not wait to see what my future visits to this school has in store for me.

This is the front of Port Richmond High School

 

 

Weight Stigma in the United States

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This past week, my classmates and I watched the movie Real Women Have Curves (2002) starring America Ferrera and learned about weight stigma. Throughout the entire movie, the female protagonist, Ana Garcia (played by America Ferrera), is always being ridiculed and verbally abused by her mother, Carmen. Ana’s mother would always call her fat and say that she was ugly. Carmen always insisted that the only way Ana would become beautiful and get a guy to like her is if she loses a lot of weight. Watching this movie and learning about weight stigma this past week in class has altered the way I view this topic. One of the things that I learned is that in today’s society people who are overweight are referred to as lazy, ugly, and emotionally disturbed. Overwieght people have issues that sometimes might not even be their faults. It is not right for people to judge someone based on their appearance. We as a society must judge people by who they are and not by how much they weigh. I know the phrases “its on the inside that matters” or “she is beautiful on the outside, but ugly on the outside” are cliché. Even though that may be, these phrases are true and we must judge everyone based on their actions and not their appearances; we must also work as a society to overcome negative stereotypes about overweight and other people.

Food Deserts in America

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This past week in my Citizen’s Appetite RFT, my class watched a movie titled A Place at the Table (2012). This movie made me realize how many food deserts exist in the United States even though this country produces more food than it possibly needs. The standard definition for a food desert according to Oxford Dictionaries is an area where it is hard to have access to and buy affordable or good-quality fresh food. A disturbing fact that I learned is that 1/6 Americans are reportedly hungry; this results in 50 million Americans being hungry today. Every president has claimed that they would combat hunger and that we are growing as a society but, the total number of Americans reportedly hungry has risen each year. The United States sadly ranks the worst among the IMF Advanced Economy of food insecurity.

Food deserts affect many low income areas throughout the United States and many people living in these areas are either having a hard time feeding there families or they are becoming obese. This is because food deserts consist mostly of Ma and Pa shops, which rarely sell any fruits and vegetables, and fast food restaurants. These places mainly sell cheap processed food’s made from corn; this leads to higher obesity rates. Americans buy these food items because it is cheaper and also because fruit and vegetable prices have risen. Many people have to either walk very far or spend a lot of money to go to a supermarket that is out of town. These barriers lead people to buy more processed foods and their health is affected as a result of this. Research shows that not getting nutrition your first three years of your life can lead to neurological problems and many other lifelong risks such as diabetes. One last disturbing fact is that 1/3 three children born in the United States from the year 2000 will develop type 2 diabetes.

The movie A Place at the Table (2012)  has made me realize that not many people have access to the nutritious food that I eat every single day.  Hunger and failure to ingest proper nutrition has lead to many health issues in a country that has more than enough food to feed its entire population. As Americans in this great country we need to figure out a way reduce the number of hungry people in the United States and we find out way to reduce the amount of food deserts.