Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors in New York, NY (2026)
3 verified food trucks & mobile vendors rules for New York, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Food Truck Permits
New York City caps mobile food vending at 3,000 full-term permits and requires every vehicle or pushcart to carry a commissioner-issued permit before vending in a public space. Vendors also need a separate $25 annual food vendor license, and operating without either draws steep civil penalties.
NYC Mobile Food Vending Permit Required
Significant RestrictionsNew York City Administrative Code § 17-307
It shall be unlawful to vend food from any vehicle or pushcart in a public space without having first obtained a permit for such vehicle or pushcart from the commissioner in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter. ... No new full-term permits shall be issued until the number of such permits which are in effect is less than 3,000. Thereafter, the maximum number of such permits which m...
Vending Zones
New York City Administrative Code § 17-315 bars food vendors from setting up within 20 feet of building entrances or sidewalk cafes, within 10 feet of driveways and subway entrances, or in bus stops and bike lanes.
NYC Food Vending Zone Restrictions
Some RestrictionsNew York City Administrative Code § 17-315
No vending pushcart shall be located against display windows of fixed location businesses, nor shall they be within twenty feet of any licensed stoop line stand, licensed sidewalk cafe, or any entranceway to any building, store, theatre, movie house, sports arena or other place of public assembly, or within twenty feet from exits, including service exits, to buildings that are exclusively resid...
Sidewalk & Mobile Vending
New York City limits general-vendor pushcarts to 8 linear feet along the curb, 3 feet toward the property line, and a 5-foot display height, while requiring a 12-foot clear pedestrian path on the sidewalk.
NYC Vending Cart Size and Placement Limits
Some RestrictionsNew York City Administrative Code § 20-465
No general vendor shall occupy more than eight linear feet of public space parallel to the curb in the operation of a vending business and, in addition, no general vendor operating any vending business on any sidewalk shall occupy more than three linear feet to be measured from the curb toward the property line.