The Oscars of Street Food: Vendy Award Nominees Share their Top Craft Service Picks

Special effects artists prep actress Zoe Saldana for her performance in "Avatar."A smart line producer or unit production manager knows that well-fed laborers are worth their weight in gold. Luckily for film crews and actors alike, the craft services department has evolved from the early days of coffee and donut carts rolling around on Universal Studios' soundstage to a bottomless 21st century spread that could feed an entire army.

Burgers, sushi rolls and gelato are among the treats that hungry grips, members of the production design team, prop masters and other craftsmen are known to snack on in between meals. When you're hauling heavy (and expensive) equipment around for 10-14 hours per day, six days a week, in the middle of nowhere for months on end, what's on the menu at the craft service truck suddenly becomes more important than anything else. So where does one begin when choosing from the vast options that the mobile food industry has to offer? Fortunately for anyone with a healthy appetite, the 5th Annual Vendy Awards, happening this Saturday (June 13th) on the JFK Bridge in Philadelphia, has already narrowed down the go-to spots for crowd-pleasing cuisine.

Satisfy your tastebuds with Potato Salad at The Flying DeutschmanDubbed "the Oscars of street food," the Vendy Awards is a cook-off between area sidewalk chefs who battle for the glory of being voted as the Best in Street Food. You know when you see people lining up for seconds, these food trucks must be serving up something special.

I recently caught up with a few Vendys nominated cooks to get an idea of the type of movie sets on which they would love to provide sustenance for cast and crew. One look at the The Flying Deutschman, a truck where Stirling Sowerby serves German food, will have you reminiscing about the Pirates of the Caribbean fantasy film franchise.

Although Sowerby's slogan is "I am the Deutschman, I'm the one chasing the Dutchman across the oceans," this self-professed tech geek would travel back in time to carve out a place for himself on the set of James Cameron's fantasy adventure Avatar. "That movie finally opened the door to great 3D filming and I would have loved to see that in real life," says Sowerby, who would stick to a platter of his personal favorite -- Curry-wurst and potato salad -- when feeding those working on the Pandora universe. While Stirling knows his Sous Chef will get a fit, "there is something about having just the slightest bit of the Curry sauce on your fork when eating the Potato salad that really tickles my taste buds."

Let's hear it for Jamie Landers' Sage & Swiss biscuits for dinner and her Maker's Mark caramel sundae called the "Kentucky Gentleman," for dessert! Photo courtesy of Luscious Bakery.Luscious Bakery owner Jamie Landers' passion for artisanal, locally sourced treats oozes from a colorful, cafe inspired truck named "Marcia." As a former aerospace engineer who switched careers after 12 years, this award-winning baker would use her time traveling abilities to run craft services on the set of Ron Howard's adventure drama Apollo 13. "I admire the actors portraying the historic mission [and] it would be so interesting to be around the NASA historians and consultants on site," says Landers, whose sweet and savory Sage & Swiss cheese biscuits make the menu.

"I hand knead them so they are light and flaky, serve them warm directly from the oven with a drizzle of wildflower honey. They are a wonderful breakfast, lunch or snack; great for people working long hours on a movie set and want something warm and filling at any hour," continues Jamie. Possessing a deep love for rocket science clearly allows her to have the best of both worlds. "Most likely, I would try to sneak away from the food truck to play in the replica Apollo capsule," she adds.

Chicken and Waffles by Co-chefs Flo and Robin at Foolish Waffles.Dedicated to pushing the boundaries of traditional Liege and Brussels waffles, the ladies at Foolish Waffles aim to connect with people who crave super yummy treats. If chefs Flo Gardner and Robin Admana could go back in time, they would want to provide food service on the set of Richard Linklater's comedy Dazed and Confused.

"It looks like it was a blast to film and embodies who we are - free spirits that don't take life too seriously and try to have fun no matter what we do," says Gardner. As far as the menu goes, this Vendy Cup contender added "if anyone is going to enjoy our Fried Chicken and Waffles, it's Mathew McConaughey's David Wooderson. 'Alright, alright, alright!'"

Take a moment to consider how physically demanding (and in some cases, dangerous) the job of making movies is for people behind-the-camera who are expected to bring their A-game -- while operating under pressure in a chaotic workplace environment -- and you can understand why chips and dip just won't cut it. That's why the time has come to celebrate all that food trucks bring to our dining tables; on any given day, they keep your stomach from grumbling when you must be alert and operating at your very best.

*Get $10 off your ticket to the Vendy Awards using the code “STREETFOOD” on the Vendy website! Ticket purchases are also tax-deductible and proceeds from the event benefit The Food Trust, a non-profit organization that makes healthy, nutritious food accessible to underprivileged communities.

Photo by Mikey Ilagan

Come taste dishes from more than a dozen top chefs on the street food scene while enjoying craft beer, wine and voting for your favorite truck to help crown the best culinary wizards in town!

What's YOUR favorite meal of the day...breakfast, lunch or dinner?

Viktor the Vampire: What Bill Nighy said about Filming Underworld

Starring in a movie as the toughest Vampire elder around sounds like lots of fun. That’s if you can bear the strenuous process of getting into character. Actor Bill Nighy, who plays Viktor in the Underworld series, told BBC that the makeup department spent six hours doing “medieval, terrible things” to make him look like he’s been sleeping for centuries. After contact lenses were added and fangs fitted, nobody on the set would eat lunch with Nighy. Later at Comic-Con, this genre film lover doubted whether he would’ve ever taken the Viktor role if he knew about the prosthetics involved.

V is for Viktor

Given the physical demands of some movie roles, do YOU consider acting to be a sport?

*If you are visiting from the A-to-Z Challenge, my blog post for Letter W will be posted later today.

From Texas to Shanghai - Sydney Aaliyah Michelle on Tattoos, Multiplex Theaters and Life after Law

If binge watching movies on iTunes was a sport, Georgetown University graduate Sydney Aaliyah Michelle has an early training advantage over her would-be opponents.

This contemporary romance writer from Texas, who got a tattoo commemorating her first novel “Another New Life,” is on my Mighty Minion Bureau team for the 2015 Blogging from A-to-Z Challenge. I recently promoted her to Special Agent – (the top “Asset” aka “Operative” among my helpers), as its Sydney’s third year assisting me in the April Blog Hop.

You can find this self-employed event coordinator enjoying Lobster Ravioli and Sidecar cocktails.

After learning that Sydney climbed the Great Wall of China, I invited her to give us the scoop on how life has evolved since her days as a lawyer.

The Madlab Post: What advice would you give to single women who are traveling abroad for the first time?

Sydney Aaliyah Michelle: I truly enjoy traveling alone especially to a new place. It allows me to explore on my own agenda and my own timetable. Before I travel someplace alone, I do a lot of research. Read about the place your visiting, have an agenda and follow it.

When I travel alone, I don’t skimp on hotels or transportation late at night. I may walk everywhere during the day, but I don’t take any chances putting myself in situations that could be dangerous. Use common sense and you’ll be fine.

Sydney's tattoo story features her love of lotus flowers and the idea that beauty can emerge from less than ideal situations.Did any stigmas of being tattooed ever have an impact on your relationships or career?

When I got my first tattoo, my parents weren’t thrilled, but I was 21, not much for them to say.  My second one, they helped me design it. They don’t love them, but they’ve accepted them. Men love my tattoos, they are all sexy and feminine, so no issues there.

I paused for a minute before getting my most visible tattoo on my left wrist, and my current boss tried to have an issue with it. My tattoos are a part of me, but don’t effect who I am or my abilities, so if someone fired me or didn’t hire me for having tattoos, I wouldn’t want to work for them anyway. 

What area of law did you practice?

I had always wanted to go to law school, but I like the idea of being a lawyer more than actually being a lawyer. I practiced law for about 9 months working for a huge law firm doing bankruptcy litigation. I sat in a small room with 10 other people 12-14 hours a day, 6 days a week reading documents on a computer. It wasn’t the kind of life I wanted to lead.

If you were a broke, ramen noodle eating artist who needed to relocate immediately, where would you move to get back on your feet? 

I would move to Singapore. I could be a beach bum and still have enough access to modern amenities to live comfortably with not a lot of money. It is an inspiring place as well, so it would feed my creative soul. Great mix of cultures. 

How many foreign languages are you fluent in?

With all of the countries I have visited and lived, I still only speak English fluently. I have some conversational Chinese and a few words slip out when no English word can quite convey what I am trying to say.  These are my three favorite Chinese words:

Hau zho bu jian – Long time, no see.

Bu zhidao – I don’t know.

Bu ming bai – Understand.

Can you tell me about your adult contemporary romance novel "Another New Life"?

Sydney released two novels, 'Hope for Her' and 'Hope for Him,' since the debut of 'Another New Life."

Here's the book blurb...

When Miranda’s talent wins her a piano performance scholarship to the University of Texas, she arrives on campus determined to experience everything college has to offer and to keep her secrets in the past where they belong.

An easy task, until the first guy who catches her eye happens to be someone, she’s known all her life.

Eight years have passed since the last time Miranda and Troy saw each other.

Can Miranda focus on her future with Troy while preventing her past from tearing them apart all over again?

Why is The Joker from "THE DARK KNIGHT" your favorite movie villain?

Heath Ledger’s performance was incredible. If it has to be our lasting image of him, I couldn’t think of a more pivotal role to immortalize his talent.

Plus, the Joker has one of my favorite lines from any movie and he delivered it brilliantly...

 “If you’re good at something, never do it for free.” 

Where do you prefer to watch movies?

I prefer to watch movies at a big, stadium seating, surround sound theater. If it’s a blockbuster, epic, anything with an 'AVENGERS character in it, I have to watch it at the theater first. Day-to-day movie watching comes from iTunes rentals. Even though I have 30 days to watch them, it’s pretty typical for me to watch three movies in a row on the final few days of the rental period.

You’re stranded on a desert island and can only have one movie and one book...what would you request?

This may be cheating a bit, but I would probably request the "LORD OF THE RINGS" Trilogy – that counts as one long movie, right? I find something new every time I watch it.

The book I would request would be “Under the Dome” by Stephen King. I think it’s pretty brilliant writing and I might find some new found kinship with the characters being stuck somewhere. 

Thank you Sydney Aaliyah Michelle for riding with me for three years straight on the alphabet wheel!

Now, for everyone else, tell me...

How many movies could YOU watch in a row?

Which cities or countries have YOU visited more than once?