In our quest to keep our readers up to date with the latest stories relating to the food truck industry has compiled a list of the stories that hit the wire this weekend from Fresno, New Smyrna Beach, Springfield, Vancouver and Portland.
June 29
Father’s Tragedy Inspires Breakfast Food Truck – Fresno, CA – James Caples always envisioned himself reviving the breakfast scene in Fresno.
But the inspiration for his business has little to do with his culinary expertise.
Instead, it comes from the worst tragedy ever to hit his family: the sudden death of his 3-month old daughter Caylie.
Find the entire article <here>
2 businesses want to change NSB’s rules to allow food trucks permanently – NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FL – Gourmet food trucks are an emerging culture, dotting streets in many large U.S. cities during festivals and fairs and an increasingly popular culinary choice for lunchtime work crowds.
While New Smyrna Beach has recently allowed a convoy of the mobile culinary vendors to come in as part of special events, a change that’s being asked for in the city’s land development regulations would allow food trucks to set up shop here permanently.
Find the entire article <here>
June 30
Chomp Food Truck to offer mobile meals in Springfield – Springfield, IL – Springfield’s newest food truck – specializing in gourmet sandwiches – will debut in a couple of weeks.
Chomp Food Truck is the brainchild of Derrick Woolbright of Springfield, a food enthusiast with experience in fabricating motor vehicles. Currently, he’s putting the finishing touches on his P30 Chevrolet, a commercial vehicle similar in size to a FedEx truck. He’s been cutting the service window into the side, installing equipment and getting a blue vinyl wrap on the exterior.
“Every day after I get off my 9-to-5 job, I’ve been working from 5-to-12 on the food truck,” said Woolbright, a Navy veteran who flew to California last March to research food trucks, which are more common there.
Find the entire article <here>
The Mighty Bowl breaks into business – Vancouver, Canada – After just a week on wheels, The Mighty Bowl, Vancouver’s first mobile food truck, sold out of food Thursday — a full 40 minutes before it was set to end lunch service.
Just outside City Hall, a throng of hungry office workers — The Columbian included — queued up for a brown rice and black bean bowl, topped with a housemade sauce, avocado, salsa, sour cream, cilantro and cheese. Some tacked on fruit smoothies. Nothing on the menu tops $6.75.
Clearly, Vancouver was ready to jump on the wagon with the hyper-trendy food cart craze. But it’s not just the bowl that’s had to be mighty: The new truck’s three owners have run a mighty 18-month gantlet of inspections and bureaucracy to get rolling.
Find the entire article <here>
July 1
Portland council to take up food truck ordinance- Portland, ME – The city council will take up a proposal Monday night to allow food trucks in the city.
The new regulations would allow food trucks to operate overnight from 10 p.m. from 6 a.m. anywhere in the city, as long as they are at least 65 feet away from the entrance to other restaurants. During the daytime hours from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. the trucks would be restricted to places where there aren’t a lot of restaurants, like the Bayside neighborhood, and industrial parks.
A special task force has been working on the ordinance for months. Portland already got a taste of food trucks when the Food Network reality show “the Great Food Truck Race” taped its season finale in the Old Port. City Councilor Ed Suslovic says food trucks are the next logical step for a city that is becoming known around the country for great food. Despite concerns from some restaurant owners about competition, Suslovic says there is room in the city for both.
Find the entire article <here>
