Red Hook Ball Fields

Profile

The food scene at the Red Hook Recreational Area started humbly in the summer of 1974, when a few Latino vendors began serving snacks to spectators at the semi-pro soccer games played on the ballfields there. But over time, the food took over as the major draw, not just for locals and sports fans, but for enthusiastic eaters from outside the neighborhood and well-known chefs like Andrew Carmellini. On Saturdays and Sundays during soccer season (usually mid-April through October), cooks serve up a vast selection of snacks, from Mexican huaraches and tacos to Salvadoran papusas to Honduran baleadas. Some may mourn the old days�before the Department of Health cracked down with stricter operating guidelines�when the stalls were makeshift setups under tarps and the eats were only for those in the know. But the authenticity, variety, and quality of food has remained constant as vendors like the Ceron family, who've been making arepas and other Colombian dishes since that first summer in 1974, return year after year. — Nina Lalli

Related Stories

Featured In

• The Best Places to Live in NYC: Our Critics’ Favorite Comestibles in Selected Neighborhoods (4/19/10)