'I'm coming back - one hotdog at a time': How the Hot Dog King of NYC was forced to sleep in his van after having his 499 permits stripped but is rebuilding with one lucrative cart outside MET museum

 Disabled veteran Dan Rossi was once the Hot Dog King of New York City, with the largest vending company in city history and 499 permits to his name. 

But, it all came crashing down when the city cracked down on multiple permit holders and revoked all but one of Rossi's licenses.  

Now he is rebuilding the business with a cart in one of the busiest spots in New York - outside The Metropolitan Museum - 'one hot dog at a time', he told Humans of New York

Disabled veteran Dan Rossi was once the Hot Dog King of New York City, with the largest vending company in city history and 499 permits to his name

Disabled veteran Dan Rossi was once the Hot Dog King of New York City, with the largest vending company in city history and 499 permits to his name

It all came crashing down when the 71-year-old challenged city plans to ban disabled veterans from trading in midtown. Now he is rebuilding the business with a cart in one of the busiest spots in New York - outside The Metropolitan Museum - 'one hot dog at a time'

It all came crashing down when the 71-year-old challenged city plans to ban disabled veterans from trading in midtown. Now he is rebuilding the business with a cart in one of the busiest spots in New York - outside The Metropolitan Museum - 'one hot dog at a time'

Vietnam veteran Rossi was the largest vendor in New York by the early 2000s, holding 499 permits which he leased out to individual traders. 

He railed against city plans to ban disabled former servicemen and women from vending in midtown, forcing officials to scrap the planned regulations. 

Rossi believes this activism made him some powerful enemies, including then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who then stripped him of his 499 permits, leaving him with one mobile food licence, which he still holds.    

Rossi's million dollar life then fell apart. His wife had a stroke, forcing the business to close. The couple lost their home in Greenwich, Connecticut, and ended up living in a van.

'I went from riches to below rags', Rossi said.    

Vietnam veteran Rossi was the largest vendor in New York by the early 2000s, selling hot dogs and water in hundreds of spots across the city

Vietnam veteran Rossi was the largest vendor in New York by the early 2000s, selling hot dogs and water in hundreds of spots across the city

In 2007, Dan Rossi returned to hot dog vending after a two year break. He borrowed a pushcart from a friend and parked it outside The Metropolitan Museum

In 2007, Dan Rossi returned to hot dog vending after a two year break. He borrowed a pushcart from a friend and parked it outside The Metropolitan Museum

Two years later, in 2007, Rossi was ready to fight again. 

He borrowed a pushcart from a friend and parked it outside The Metropolitan Museum, along Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street in Manhattan.

A permit for the coveted spot, known for its hungry tourists and lack of nearby eateries, would usually cost around $650,000 a year, but Rossi had no intention of paying. 

'I'm a disabled veteran. I sacrificed for this country, and I've got a right to make a living like everyone else,' he explained. 

Rossi prepared legal dossiers filled with arguments why he has the right to vend outside the Met, without paying the city. 

His primary argument stems from a state law from the Civil War era that granted veterans the right to free vending permits, the New York Times reported.  


For the first five years in the spot Rossi spent most nights sleeping in the cart.

Officials tried to pass laws making it illegal to sleep in a cart, so Rossi moved to his van. 

Police have also repeatedly tried to move Rossi on, giving him tickets, taking him to court, throwing him in jail, and once trying to tow his cart. 

But every time he received a warning or a setback, Rossi moved closer to the museum steps.

Two of Rossi's carts now sit in pride of place at the center of the museum - one run by Rossi himself and the other by his daughter Elizabeth, also a disabled marine.

The pandemic devastated his business and forced him to shutter the cart for months on end, visiting only to make sure police had not moved them. 

He was recently able to reopen and is now flanked by seven other carts who sell ice cream, halal food, pretzels, and more hot dogs.  

From riches to rags to stability, Rossi's business now supports three generations of his family and provides sufficient earnings to survive the winter off season.     

'They’re not going to beat me. Not again. I may not be the Hot Dog King anymore, but I’ve still got a lot of fight left in me. I’m coming back. One hot dog at a time.'

From riches to rags to stability, Rossi's business now supports three generations of his family and provides sufficient earnings to survive the winter off season

From riches to rags to stability, Rossi's business now supports three generations of his family and provides sufficient earnings to survive the winter off season

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