New vending laws are in place and it affects us eaters. That’s right - a law prohibits more than just a handful or so trucks/carts in the Portsmouth area to operate right now, and this law will be up for review with the City Council this fall. That means, fast-food buyers beware: you’ll be back to the old “non-organic” greasy menu offered by McDonald’s and Burger King at the other end of town during your lunch hour soon. Unfortunate for most to contemplate that our “Live Free or Die” state slogan may actually be foretelling our gastric fate. For some, eating healthy is a must, and finding good healthy food on-the-run is not easy. And for most, this is hard to come by cheaply. Isn’t that what vendors provide? The filling of that niche is essential to those of us who travel to work by bike or walk. I think we need to keep the vendors and their more nutritious cheap lunches around a bit longer, thank you. I can bet that the population census will thank us for it as well.

For me, having what I feel may be a limited amount of time to buy ‘the good stuff’ - I ventured out on my red Honda scooter yesterday and into the deep of downtown, searching out those vendors. I found just what I was looking for: The Fresh Local truck idling to the side of the South Church. Disappointed they were out of their homemade Mac & Cheese delight; I opted for their chicken sandwich made with a spicy aioli. The line was a bit busy, my order seemingly taking a while, as the girl taking orders was a bit flighty - leaving my sandwich on the edge of the truck to pour a drink for someone else…but all in all - when I bit into the crispy outside of that calzone look-alike, I was pretty pleased. Chicken, onion and cucumbers. Interesting. Slowly following my quick bliss was a burning sensation like no other - my volcanized lips and gums quickly flushed out by a freshly squeezed orange-lime lemonade I purchased previously at The Lemonworks stand near Prescott Park (good choice). Should have asked, “How hot?”

In retrospect, I was saddened not only by the fact that I could only finish ½ the sandwich due to its capacity for inflammation, but also by the comment that Sarah (the lemon-aide) made when mixing my drink - “We just started our season. We’ve only been open for 4 days of business.” To think about our town placing restrictions on these vendors who struggle to make ends meet through a very meek start to this summer season boiled me more than the overspicing of my lunch. The fact that I only saw 2 struggling vendors out on such a beautiful day downtown worried me. It worried me to think they may not even make it until the fall - when the laws may change…and what a pity that would be.

Support your local vendors, please - and try the falafel or fish instead, unless you like it hot!  Visit www.freshlocalnh.com for more details about where their truck will be and their new restaurant over by the Great Bay Marine in Newington. Stop by to see Sarah or talk to Dan, the owner of Lemonworks. Preserve them, not food.

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