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Louisville Food Trucks Wary of New Regs

admin — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:07:33 +0000

As reported by LEOWeekly.com, link to full article follows;

On the morning of Thursday, Oct. 20, Mayor Greg Fischer’s office sent out a press release touting new food truck regulations that cut bureaucratic red tape for the increasingly popular industry.

“Food trucks add a new element of energy on the street and we needed to relax the regulations to encourage more of them,” wrote Fischer. “This is a win-win for the community and for these budding entrepreneurs.”

Some of those “budding entrepreneurs” had quite a different reaction when they heard about the revised regulations, which the Metro Council had approved five days earlier.

“These ordinances went into effect 5 days ago and they kill every mobile food operation that you all are fans of,” Matt Davis, owner of Lil Cheezers food truck, wrote on Facebook. “They END our business until we can get compliant.”

MozzaPi’s Facebook status that morning read “Due to the new ordinances put into effect for food trucks in our city I have canceled all of our public events for this week and next.”

A disgruntled Davis appeared on local TV news, and a flurry of Facebook posts and tweets ensued, as food truck fans expressed shock and outrage at what they viewed as their imminent demise.

But by the time Monday rolled around, Louisville’s food trucks were still cooking, even if some of their owners remained skeptical of and upset by the ordinance.

This confused dance of city government officials and food truck operators is nothing new, as Louisville finds itself among a growing number of cities struggling to regulate this fast-growing breed of restaurants on wheels.

The ordinance, passed unanimously by the council, undeniably relaxed regulations on food trucks in two areas. Instead of having to obtain a permit for each location that a food truck operates, now owners simply have to obtain one permit per vehicle. Also, the “buffer zones” required of trucks — the distance between residential zones and similar brick and mortar establishments — was cut in half.

What Davis didn’t like is what remained in the law, particularly requirements for owners to 1) obtain a criminal background check for every employee, 2) provide the city with a detailed map of every place they intend to operate, and 3) obtain the notarized consent of the property owner where they do business — a person who often lives out of state.

Davis says these requirements — which already existed, but were not previously enforced — discriminate against food trucks and present unnecessary obstacles to their businesses. He also feels the mayor’s office, which held meetings with food truck owners prior to the passage of the ordinance, blindsided them by not mentioning that these would now be the set law of the land.

“Those meetings with us were like window dressing. It all got passed in a council meeting without our knowledge, and we were handed a press release five days after. The only way that it can look from where we’re sitting is shady and underhanded.”

But according to the mayor’s office, the ordinance simply codified pre-existing regulations.

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New York City Food Truck Crackdown Accelerates

admin — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 21:15:32 +0000

As reported by Gothamist.com, link to full article follows;

Earlier this week, we heard the rumblings of some new legislation designed to curb the spread of mobile food vendors, who have already been facing down opponents in Midtown, the Upper West Side and Park Slope.

Today, the Post reports that UWS Councilwoman Gale Brewer has indeed introduced a new bill, requiring the Department of Health to report the number of permits it issues each year to food trucks and carts, as part of a larger plan to regulate trucks overall.

We spoke to Brewer to find out what exactly her beef with food trucks and carts is:

trucks camp out in illegal parking spots in front of hydrants

“It has become apparent that common-sense regulations are needed to strike a balance between the concerns of residents, and the right for these small businesses to operate,” Brewer said. “We receive many complaints from constituents about vendors, and take these complaints seriously.

“I am not anti-vendor, but I feel that it is in the best interest of all parties to work together and come up with effective solutions to everyone’s concerns.” She told the Post that trucks camp out in illegal parking spots in front of hydrants or feed meters all day, and called some of the trucks “noisy and filthy.”

brick-and-mortar food businesses see food trucks as a threat

Midtown Lunch co-founder Zach Brooks immediately called BS on the bill, saying “It doesn’t have anything to do with pollution and parking spaces. The reason they’re going after food trucks is because brick-and-mortar food businesses see food trucks as a threat.”

Pasadena Restaurants and Trucks in Food Fight

admin — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 17:45:49 +0000

As reported by Pasadena Star News, link to full article follows;

PASADENA – Restaurant owners in Pasadena fired the opening shot Tuesday in a battle with trendy gourmet food trucks, which brick-and-mortar businesses claim are luring away customers.

To the chagrin of many Pasadena restaurant owners, the city of Pasadena doesn’t subject food trucks the pricey conditional-use permits restaurants must obtain to open for business.

“You can’t have a double standard and that’s the problem,” said Robin Salzer, owner of Robin’s B-B-Q and Woodfire Grill. “The city created a double standard because food trucks were the flavor of the month.”

Restaurant owners don’t simply want to force food truck operators to apply for conditional-use permits. Many want food trucks barred from parking on city streets, restricted to operating on private property (500 feet from the nearest restaurant) and operating only after 10 p.m.

Some even suggested enacting a ban similar to San Marino’s ordinance, which doesn’t allow food trucks at all.

“The black and white of this is that catering trucks shouldn’t be allowed in Pasadena,” said Bessie Politis, Western Pacific regional quality assurance manager for Starbucks.

But restaurants should tread lightly when regulating food trucks, said Matt Geller, chief executive officer of the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association.

Geller’s association sued the city of Monrovia this year for attempting to draft laws to ban food trucks at the behest of restaurant owners.

“Where was the city of Pasadena when Blockbuster was going out of business?” Geller said. “This is not the deal of unfair competition, it is consumer choice.”

He added that any Pasadena ordinance restricting food trucks must have a “public safety component … or, it won’t hold up.”

The easier solution is to sit down with the vendors and work out a deal amenable to all sides, Geller said.

“We are not bullies, we have done a lot of work with cities,” Geller said.

Restaurants power much of Pasadena’s economic engine, according to city officials.

Pasadena has the highest per capita concentration of restaurants in the nation, city officials claim.

With the recent redevelopment of Old Pasadena, high density residential building and mass transit, food trucks are just the next trend in the city’s urbanization, according to William Kimura, Pasadena Department of Public Health, environmental health division manager.

The trucks’ popularity has “exploded” in the last year, Kimura said, with trucks parking in Old Pasadena.

The city tried to intervene, but failed in an attempt to drive the trucks from business districts popular with young urban professionals.

More Food Trucks to Choose from in San Diego

admin — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 19:01:42 +0000

As reported by SignOnSanDiego.com, link to full article follows;

The Devilicious food truck, which debuted early this year, has grown so popular that its owner, Dyann Manning, started a second one.

She describes her fare as comfort food with a twist. By K.C. Alfred

On any given day, hungry San Diegans craving a quick, appetizing lunch that doesn’t involve a trip to the cafeteria or the nearest fast-food outlet can sign on to their Twitter and Facebook accounts and within seconds find a nearby food truck peddling upscale comfort food, ethnic cuisine, barbecue and even dessert.

Running the gamut from gourmet burgers and lobster grilled cheese to pierogi and New York-style pizzas, food trucks are serving up a new brand of on-the-go fare that is enriching some entrepreneurs while challenging the staying power of other wannabe restaurateurs.

Although still a nascent movement in San Diego County, mobile food operations have mushroomed from just a couple of trucks a little more than a year ago to about 40, with more on the way. Their presence is largely confined to the city of San Diego, focusing on locations with a heavy concentration of businesses to take advantage of the lunch trade.

Food trucks are hardly a new phenomenon in the culinary landscape, having been around for decades as the so-called “roach coaches” and taco trucks that roamed construction sites and other blue-collar workplaces. Their latest incarnation, which first blossomed in foodie havens like New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles, is now cropping up in cities across America as food-savvy consumers search for more convenient and innovative dining options.

The National Restaurant Association, which has identified food trucks as one of the hottest trends in the restaurant industry, recently found that an increasing number of consumers are much more likely to purchase a meal at a mobile eatery than they were just a year ago.

Concession Trailer Appliances a Growing Niche

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 18:55:16 +0000

As reported by Appliance Magazine, link to full article follows;

Consumers are increasingly interested in mobile foodservice, making food trucks a hot trend in the restaurant industry, according to new research from the National Restaurant Association.

Data from consumer surveying shows:
• 59% of consumers would likely to visit a food truck if their favorite restaurant offered one, up from 47% in 2010
• 18% saw a food truck in their community this summer
• 28% of those who saw a food truck made a mobile foodservice purchase

Food truck’s commercial appliance equipment list can vary greatly depending on the intended usage of the truck. Some trucks are equipped for complete, gourmet food preparation, with equipment including:

refrigeration and freezers
on-board electrical generators
air-conditioning
grills
char-broilers
fryers
microwave ovens
stovetops
convection ovens
cold beverage dispensers
coffee and other hot beverage-making equipment
cooking ventilation

Food trucks are viewed as a rising trend, not a passing fad, according to separate research performed by Technomic. It shows that 91% of consumers polled who are familiar with food trucks view the trend as having staying power and not a passing fad. Only 7% say they expect their frequency of visits to food trucks to decrease over the next year.

Technomic also pointed out that 70% of non-users are still hesitant to purchase food from mobile vehicles, which is probably the biggest current growth challenge. Once consumers gain exposure, the firm’s research shows, they seem to have very positive impressions of the experience.

Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group for the National Restaurant Association, points out that convenience is one of the big drivers of restaurant growth.

He said food trucks are often equated with chefs and entrepreneurs, but also offer the opportunity for operators of established restaurants to expand operations and enhance their presence.

Consumers living in the West (29%) and Northeast (24%) were much more likely than those in the South (15%) and Midwest (9%) to see a food truck parked in their community this summer, according to the restaurant association survey.

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Tough Economy Helps Fuel Food Truck Craze

admin — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 18:33:24 +0000

As reported by CFNews13.com, link to full article follows;

You’ve probably seen them around town. Cheesy burritos, gator skewers and the all-popular empanadas are just some of the options straight off the truck.

In this case, it’s the Gator Country BBQ, just one of many food trucks in downtown Orlando. And these trucks are growing in number.

“It’s a combination of the economy, the unemployment rate, which is at least double what is being reported to us,” says economist John Ledford. “We’re seeing this burst of entrepreneurship that we haven’t seen in a very long time.”

Ledford adds operating trucks is a more simple and cheaper than renting a location. That doesn’t make it easier.

Truck owner Tom Waggestad says his business has its downfalls. He says some nights he doesn’t make any money, and getting operating permits can be difficult.

Source

Buffalo Landlords Seek City Limits on Street Food

admin — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 19:28:17 +0000

As reported by BuffaloNews.com, link to full article follows;

Downtown commercial property owners want to turn up the heat on city officials to tighten regulations on food trucks in Buffalo, saying restaurant tenants in the central business district are being harmed when the mobile vendors park in front of their buildings.

The pressure from major area landlords comes as city officials and parties on both sides of the issue try to hammer out an agreement on proposed new regulations, which have been stalled in the Common Council since late July.

North District Council Member Joseph Golombek Jr., who is sponsoring a bill on food trucks, is calling for parties interested in the new requirements for mobile food sellers to meet next week in hopes of reaching a compromise between the vendors and restaurant owners.

Developer Carl Paladino led the charge Wednesday morning at the monthly meeting of Buffalo Place, calling for the board of the business improvement district to petition the city to stop issuing permits to food truck vendors who are “unfairly competing with tenants in buildings who pay good rent and taxes.”

“Allowing these vendors to park out front and put one of our tenants out of business is patently unfair,” said Paladino, citing Just Pizza and Charlie the Butcher in his Ellicott Square.

We have to stop the trucks now

“It’s very, very unfair for this city to issue permits to these people to allow them to come downtown and compete with our tenancy … that are paying huge taxes.”

The Buffalo Place board is largely made up of major property developers and landlords, including Paladino, who is the biggest landowner in downtown Buffalo. Many of them have restaurants as tenants and appeared to agree with Paladino.

“We have to stop the trucks now. The restaurants downtown are fed up with this,” Paladino said.

Food truck operators are prohibited from opening on public property until the city enacts a law, except for several sites permitted by Buffalo Place. Food trucks are not banned from operating on private property.

In Dallas Food Truck Confusion Mounts

admin — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 18:13:13 +0000

As reported by 7NEWS, link to full article follows;

They seem to have driven into Denver overnight, and now they’re everywhere.

Food truck businesses are growing so fast there are constant questions about where they can and can’t park.

For example, they can’t park in the central business district in downtown Denver because of competing interests with established restaurants.

Andrew DelGrosso operates the Fat Sully’s pizza truck, which is particularly popular.

“Different food trucks do better in different spots,” said DelGrosso. He said Civic Center Park is a good location for him during the lunch hour. He also said Washington Park is a good location for late-night bar crowds.

But while Civic Center Park is open to food trucks every Tuesday and Thursday, DelGrosso said areas like the banking district in downtown are off limits, which can hurt business.

“Some of the laws and codes that are written might be a little outdated,” he said. “I think they should look at changing some.”

The central business district currently off limits to food trucks extends from 13th Street to 20th Street and Larimer Street to Colfax Avenue and Lincoln Street.

Research Shows Food Trucks Gaining Momentum

admin — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 20:08:42 +0000

As reported by Restaurant.org, link to full article follows;

Food trucks are one of the hottest trends in the restaurant industry right now, and consumers are showing increasing interest in mobile foodservice, new research by the National Restaurant Association confirms.

The new research, a consumer survey conducted last month, found that nearly six out of ten (59 percent) American adults say they would be likely to visit a food truck if their favorite restaurant offered one, up from 47 percent just one year ago.

“Our research shows that in just one year, the number of consumers who say they would be likely to visit a food truck has increased significantly. We also found that food trucks have a more noticeable presence in communities in the West and Northeast than in other parts of the United States,” said Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group for the National Restaurant Association.

“Though food trucks are often equated with chefs and entrepreneurs, they also present opportunities for operators of established restaurants to expand their operations and presence, as a majority of consumers say they would visit a food truck run by their favorite restaurant. Mobile foodservice can be a good way to extend an existing restaurant brand beyond the four walls of the establishment,” Riehle said.

Tamales, Los Angeles’ Original Street Food

admin — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 05:04:22 +0000

As reported by LATimes.com, link to full article follows;

Southern California’s latest foodie trend has the region atwitter. Lines form long into the night at the latest hot spot for edible treasures, while wily entrepreneurs outdo each other by parking at the best spots. But not everyone is happy. Brick-and-mortar restaurant owners fume that their pop-up rivals take away business; county health officials quickly enact regulations, and politicians push laws to regulate or even ban the vendors from city limits — but not without sparking a public uproar.

Such a scenario has dominated Southern California for the past couple of years as food trucks — whether traditional loncheras or their luxe cousins — increase in popularity. But the same mobile phenomenon overtook Los Angeles more than a century ago, spurred not by tacos but tamales, and the vehicles of choice weren’t trucks but, rather, horse-drawn wagons. They’re long forgotten, nearly invisible even in the local history books, but these pioneer tamaleros were crucial ambassadors for the growth of Mexican food here — and in a region wedded to transit, their movable feasts laid the tracks for drive-thrus, lunch trucks and our insatiable fascination with easy-to-find, affordable grub.

Tamales were a natural to become L.A.’s first street-food fad, given their utilitarianism, cheap pricing and irresistible taste. The origins of the city’s tamale sellers remain murky, although newspaper accounts place them as far back as the 1870s, and by 1880, a Los Angeles Herald article commented, “The experience of our Eastern visitors will be incomplete unless they sample” a Los Angeles street tamale.

They dominated downtown by the 1890s, specifically from the old plaza near what is today Olvera Street southwest toward 6th Street, between Temple and Main, blocks that attracted itinerant men, new residents and laborers looking to waste their week’s earnings in the many saloons. As dusk fell, an army of 2-by-4 pushcarts and wagons wheeled their way through this Tamale Row, setting up shop until last call and beyond.

On the menu was everything from popcorn to pigs’ feet, oyster cocktails to sandwiches, but the majority of them hawked tamales prepared elsewhere and kept warm in steam buckets. Competition spurred innovation — wagons transformed into portable kitchens with functioning stoves (some illegally tapped into the city’s gas mains and water pipes) and featured counters so that as many as eight people at a time could dine around the wagons. One enterprising tamalero even rolled around town in a two-story giant, the top level his sleeping quarters.