The big news over the weekend was the bomb scare in New York’s Times Square, which diverted some of the headlines away from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

You may be wondering, what does this have to do with food? We are, after all, The Food Channel.

Well, we’re currently working on our Top Ten Dessert Trends for 2010, which will be released soon, and one of the ten we’re going to be talking about relates to sweets sold on the street. And guess who alerted police about the suspicious-looking SUV parked in the Times Square area where thousands of tourists were strolling about, heading for dinner or a Broadway theater.

Yep, it was a couple of NYC street vendors who sought out a mounted officer to tip him off about the smoking vehicle. As we all know now, the bombing attempt failed, and hopefully, law enforcement officials will soon track down the suspect or suspects.

Let’s hear it for the street vendors

In addition to selling tasty food and beverages, t-shirts, sunglasses and wristwatches, clearly these street smart entrepreneurs perform another valuable city service: vigilance. In a scary and uncertain time, that’s no minor matter.

So, if you happen to find yourself buying an ice cream cone, hot dog or even a knock-off designer purse from a city street vendor this week, especially in New York, think about leaving a nice tip.

And say thanks for watching our back.