Food Cart Financiers

When the cushy corner office didn't quite work out for Oleg Voss after the economy went south, he ended up instead in a food cart, selling schnitzel. (Right, I know, why didn't you think of that?!)

CNBC's piece on former investment bankers like Voss who have ended up trading in their ties and cuff links for a cart filled with breaded cutlets of chicken, fish or pork (schnitzel), or ice cream or cupcakes are making a go of it as entrepreneurs on their own terms.

The result so far? Less than half of their previous income, but double the satisfaction, too.

And what better time than during a recession to provide low-cost meals to hungry, cash-strapped urbanites? It's time for downsizing anyway. Gone are the two-martini lunches with petite filet. Instead, hello, falafel (King of Falafel cart in Queens, NY) or schnitzel with a double scoop cone from the Big Gay Ice Cream Truck for dessert (that their name is awesome and that they offer toppings like Wasabi  Pea Dust, Elderflower Syrup and Ginger Syrup -- with or without curry -- is just one more, shall we say, cherry on top).

The upshot here, of course, is that these folks have all proven that just because you get handed a lemon in life (lose your job, your spouse, your house), it doesn't mean you can 't make lemonade, or lemon ice, or lemon chiffon pie and maybe sell it from a cart and see where that gets you.

It might just get you happier than you thought it ever would.

Photo: Schnitzel & Things.