ride by night
Ron Diorio
This is Manhattan, where a simple phone call can have regional cuisines from almost any corner of the globe delivered to your door at almost any hour of the day or night. Feel a craving for pad thai at midnight? Make a call. Hungry for some lamb khurma? Make a call. Got a sudden yearning for keftedes and spanakopita? There’s the phone. Before long somebody who may or may not speak English will ring your doorbell and hand it over.
We love the food and we love the convenience; but aside from the carefully considered tip we give little thought to the person who brings us the food. They’re almost always new immigrants, mostly young men, and they’ve traveled tens of thousands of miles to come to Manhattan and deliver food to your door.
You see them everywhere in the city…which makes them virtually invisible. They’re riding heavy, clunky bicycles with awkward hot-boxes attached to keep the food warm. They’re toting ten pounds of cold steel chain and a three pound lock, because this is Manhattan and no ordinary bike chain will keep a bike secure. Day and night, summer and winter, rain and shine, they’re on the street, bringing you falafel and shawarma and all eight of the great regional cuisines from China.
This is Manhattan, a city jaded to miracles. Ain’t it great?
Editorial note: Ron Diorio’s photographs will be on exhibit at the Peter Hay Halpert Fine Art gallery in New York City from 10 January to 28 February. There will be a reception for the artist on opening night. Local Utatans are encouraged to attend.
Blog photograph copyrighted to the photographer and used with permission by utata.org. All photographs used on utata.org are stored on flickr.com and are obtained via the flickr API. Text is copyrighted to the author, greg fallis and is used with permission by utata.org. Please see Show and Share Your Work
