Style
The Nike SB Dunk Low 'Street Hawker' looks good enough to eat
Six Chinese dishes. Two sneakers. One masterpiece.
The horror of 2020 is finally ending and we’re looking forward to what 2021 has to offer — including new sneaker drops. Next on Nike’s agenda is a masterpiece that hypebeasts and foodies alike will love. The Nike SB Dunk Low Street Hawker, designed by Guangzhou artist Jason Deng, pays homage to Chinese street food vendors and the bonding effects food has.
The shoe made rounds earlier this season and was initially thought to be a Chinese New Year colorway, but the story behind the shoe shows it’s much more than that. Its watercolor medium, as well as suede textures, acknowledge six regional dishes from Chinese cities, combined with a slew of other, subtly-incorporated nods to Chinese cuisine. From flour-based dishes to Yangchun noodles and chopsticks, the Street Hawker Dunk serves delicious looks sure to make it a popular drop.
Feast your feet — Starting with the left shoe, a lighter beige is used to mirror that of three flour-based dishes, while the green suede of its toes nods to Douzhi, a green bean soup from Beijing. Meanwhile, the embossed suede on the lateral signifies pita bread pieces, with the watercolor designs on the side noting a Xi’an specialty of mutton soup usually served alongside the pita.
Further use of graphics behind draw from Shanghai noodles and blue skies, both accented adjacent by chopstick swooshes and an insole mimicking porcelain designs. A bold 10-cent copper coin embroidered on the heel rounds out the shoe.
The right shoe is equally packed with detail, with warmer tones reflecting spicy to sweet notes on a Chinese menu. On the toe box, an eye-catching metallic color simulates the heat of Chengdu hotpots and boiling chili oil. Orange lateral leather is reminiscent of Guangzhou’s crispy roasted goose skin, and a silver Swoosh nods to the metal hooks that said birds hang from in butcher shops. The goose is often roasted with flame and lychee wood, reflected in the watercolor design around the eyelets.
Offering a sweet treat to cool off your tastebuds, the heel embodies a Taipei dessert with shaved ice and taro balls, while the insole aims to resemble a bench terrace used to grow rice paddies. Meat-colored linings and cooking oil yellow outsoles complete the food tour.
An identical message unites the drastically different shoes. On the back of the heel, classic Nike branding has been replaced with the Chinese character for “eat,” following the theme perfectly. Four colors on the laces, based on the four key seasonings in Chinese food, tie up the shoes and let you change the look according to taste. Green laces stand for shallots, yellow represent ginger, white depict garlic, and black reference black pepper.
A delicious drop — Nike is set to release the Street Hawker Dunk in 2021, before the Chinese New Year. Hungry fans can check out the official rundown of the shoe on the brand’s website, while those with an appetite for the sneaker can cop the silhouette January 13 on SNKRS. We’re certainly craving a pair, seeing as we have taste.
