Needed is döner kebab, or perhaps falafel, maybe Cornish pasties.

It was quarter to 8 on Friday night. I was with Blake at Party Time Liquor in Greenville, wrapping a beer tasting, and neither of us had eaten since lunch.

Was there any way we could grab a quick bite in downtown New Albany without eating chain fast food, and still make the beer stand in the alley at Bicentennial Park in time to have Houndmouth or two?

My first thought was DP UpDogs.

I searched the web on my i-Phone and couldn’t find the hours of operation; the phone kept ringing, so apparently our best bet wasn’t open. The problem is that downtown’s sit-down indie restaurants are packed on Friday (that’s a very good problem to have, by the way), and it would be unlikely to score a carry-out sandwich quickly at any of them.

Granted, we were grilling out in the beer garden at Bank Street Brewhouse, but I dislike getting in the way of paying customers, of whom there were a few queued up as we arrived. In the end, we each drank two hygienic plastic cups of dinner amid the music, and resolved to snack at home. That’s okay. We’re trained professionals. I can’t speak for Blake, though I had cheese and crackers.

The gospel of the free market suggests that this situation eventually will solve itself. The solution might come more quickly if the city completes downtown streets, and the number of walkers and bikers escalates. At some point there will be a food truck, or existing establishments will do what we’re trying to do with the grilling program, at least in fair weather.

But what I really, really wish we had here was döner kebab, just like in good ol’ Germany … with a streetside window.

online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304432704577350194262835880.html">There's Nothing More German Than a Big, Fat Juicy Döner Kebab, by James Angelos (WSJ)

In fast food, Germany is better known for wurst. But few German street snacks are more appreciated than the Turkish döner kebab.

Brought to Germany four decades ago, the döner is to Berlin what pizza is to New York: a transplanted food that has taken on a new life in its adopted land. Today, there are more döner stands in Berlin than in Istanbul. And about 720 million servings are sold nationally each year according to an industry association.

German-style döners are seasoned meat processed into a large cylindrical loaf, roasted on a vertical spit, then thinly sliced with a long knife and wrapped in flat bread with vegetable toppings and, sometimes, a spicy sauce.