Every morning, thousands of New Yorkers line up at chrome breakfast carts for coffee, bagels, and doughnuts — fueling the city’s workforce with meals that cost just a few dollars. But behind this daily ritual is a fragile industry: one that depends on massive suppliers churning out pastries by the truckload, immigrant vendors working shifts at the crack of dawn, and a permit system so restrictive it’s sparked protests in the streets. In a city that runs on breakfast-on-the-go, these carts are a lifeline for workers and a multimillion-dollar business. Now, with rising costs and mounting legal battles, the future of New York’s breakfast cart industry is at a crossroads.