Claim Jumping

Posted on September 14, 2007 by David

The Manhattan icon of the hot dog cart is an anachronism. Ignatius J. Reilly would find it even more tragic here, because the business model has morphed itself into all manners of foodstuffs, most of which outshine soupy weiners. Halal is presently king of New York, but you can find find much more than that: falafal carts, bbq carts, and even new twists on the ice cream truck, i.e., steak trucks and pizza trucks.

But steady as she goes in the am is the good old coffee carts. A dude (occasionally with his wife) standing in portable 4 x 3 cubicle with tankers of coffee and dozens of different pastries, usually with a remarkable memory–at least 4 coffee cart guys in the City pour my drink without me needing to utter a word beyond “morning”.

This summer, I noticed a trend: almost every cart I’ve patronized has served the iced coffee in a plastic cup bearing the words “Claim Jumper.” The phenomenon was too pervasive and durable to be more than a coincidence. But why the glut of such cups? What does it mean to be a “Claim Jumper”?

Well, thanks to the new Jesus, I discovered what you left-coasters already know: Claim Jumper is apparently a restaurant chain with a 30 year history in the Pacific timezone. Its website tells me that it has made a big leap eastward, venturing into Illinois even. But no closer than that.

So why the spate of glasses bearing the logo? Did some manufacturing mishap lead to an excess of supply? Or is this a shrewd marketing ploy to emblaze the image of Claim Jumper into our subconsciousness before they come to homestead on our Island?

If it is the latter, Mr. Jumper, consider this: the folks drinking from these cups are waiting in line at carts that sit within mere feet of Starbucks. We make choices as consumers, and you may well have a rough time steering us away from Rafiqi’s.

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