The growing food truck frenzy is no longer the sole province of cutting-edge chefs and budding restaurateurs looking to sell their culinary creations on the streets of major cities like San Diego. Recognizing the value of mobile marketing, well-known restaurant and fast-food chains are now entering the fray. The latest entry is San Diego-based Jack in the Box, which plans to debut its tricked-out, 34-foot-long truck later this month with a limited menu of burgers, fries and tacos that will be cooked in its mobile kitchen. Outfitted with a grill, fryer, toaster, fountain beverage dispenser and prep area, the truck will be used not only for community events and catered functions, but it will also be stationed in areas like the Gaslamp Quarter where nightclub and bar patrons looking for a quick bite to eat can grab a Jumbo Jack up until 2 a.m. “It really came down to wanting to reach out to our guests in a new vehicle, literally,” said Terri Funk Graham, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for Jack in the Box. “It’s really about connecting with your guests, and this is just one way to reach them in a place you’d otherwise not be able to. “The truck will be going to promotional events like concerts and sporting events, or to the Gaslamp Quarter, Pacific Beach, the colleges, where there’s something happening in the community. So we’re connecting to them in their environment. It’s not like we’re pursuing every corner.” Dubbed “Jack’s Munchie Mobile,” the truck will not likely be missed wherever it’s parked. The eye-popping design takes advantage of bold colors and fun illustrations of Jack in action, one of them depicting him wielding a spatula while driving a tiger- and polar bear-drawn chariot that’s pursuing a thunderbird clutching a takeout bag. Another shows Jack fending off snakes, one of which is devouring a shake. “When we looked at the design, we looked at a few options, deciding what would Jack paint his truck to look like,” said Jen Kennedy, associate marketing manager. “We’re taking a nod from the ’70s when you would see the panel vans with the wizards on the side and intricate artwork, and we did something very similar.” Read the rest <here>  

Monawara Sultana says her rent is going up: $14,000 for a two-year permit to run a food cart where she sells $1 hot dogs outside of Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx. And it's not the city levying the increase or recouping the money. It's the permit holder, who is asking for double what she previously paid, according to Ms. Sultana. "It's not fair," said the Bangladeshi immigrant and mother of three. "Why did it go up so much?" The city's competitive street food culture has created a thriving black market for mobile food vending permits issued by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The city charges a mere $200 for most food-cart permits, which must be paid every two years when they are renewed. But it only issues 3,100 year-round permits plus an additional 1,000 seasonal permits—not enough to satisfy demand. Transferring or renting these permits to another vendor is illegal but everyone, including the city's Health Department, acknowledges, that it happens. Two years ago, the city's Department of Investigation did an undercover probe of improper permit transfers, which led to six arrests. The department recommended, among other things, that the Health Department move to a competitive sealed-bidding process to help "eliminate the criminal conduct found in the investigation." Elliott Marcus, an associate health commissioner, said the black market was a source of "big concern." Still, in a statement, the Department of Health noted: "While the Health Department suspects that in some instances permits are being transferred illegally, it is extremely difficult to prove an illegal sale in a particular case because the law does allow a permit holder to employ other licensed vendors to work his or her cart." To help remedy that, the department will soon propose changes requiring that permit holders appear when renewing permits and carts are re-inspected every two years. Meanwhile, demand for permits and their black-market prices continue to climb as street food's popularity soars with blogs like Midtown Lunch chronicling vendors' moves and some gourmet food trucks developing cult-like followings. Some permits fetch as much as $20,000 for two years, vendors say. In the case of Ms. Sultana, the Bronx food vendor, she says the permit holder told her someone else was willing to pay $15,000 for the permit she previously paid $7,000 for two years ago. Mohammed Rahman, who has operated the popular Kwik Meal cart in midtown for 11 years, says he pays $15,000 every two years for his permit. "The city charges only $200, why should I have to pay $15,000? All the profits go to someone else." Obtaining a food cart or truck permit in one's own name can take a decade or more, according to vendors. There are 2,080 people currently on the citywide waiting list for a two-year permit. The list is compiled of license holders and it's not uncommon for families to get licenses for every member of their family—even if they don't work at a cart—to increase their chances of obtaining a permit. The Health Department has distributed 292 year-round permits for food carts since June 2007 through a lottery system, forcing many new carts and trucks to navigate their way through brokers and middlemen who sell the permits, or the permit holders themselves, most of whom are retired vendors. According to a list of permit holders from the Health Department, some live as far away as South Carolina, Texas and Arizona. Read the rest <here>

The idea hit Doug Somerville one day as he was looking out the window of his Kaosamai Thai Restaurant in Fremont. Every day, he said, he watched a Mexican food truck moving down North 36th Street. Why not do the same thing with Thai food? The concept seemed like a winner, with low overhead and a wider customer reach. Somerville bought two trucks and started the street-food vending side of his business in 2005. In the years since, as creative cuisine and foodie culture flourished in America, demand has spiked for food from such "roving restaurants." Yet, unlike other cities - Portland, for instance - Seattle's street-food scene has been slow to emerge because of restrictive city laws, city planners say. And officials want to change that. New legislation is expected to go before the City Council by the end of the month, detailing changes that would make it easier for street-food vendors to set up shop and, in the process, help bring more economic vitality to neighborhoods. "Urban neighborhoods are where we want our growth," said Gary Johnson, center-city coordinator for the Department of Planning and Development, which helped craft the proposal. "A street-food scene can help brand a neighborhood in a positive way." The recommendations are directed at sidewalk-cart businesses and larger mobile food trucks, some of which essentially are rolling kitchens. The proposal's highlights include expanding the type of food sidewalk vendors can sell and allowing larger food trucks to park curbside. Sidewalk vendors now are limited to mostly selling coffee, popcorn and hot dogs. That's due to rules approved in the 1980s, when outdoor vending was associated with blight, Johnson said. Street food now is seen as a way to enliven public spaces. Under the proposed guidelines, "we're going to allow everything on the push cart except raw proteins," said Christopher Skilton, health and environmental investigator with the county health department. If someone wanted to sell, say, chicken skewers, the meat would have to be cooked fully beforehand at a licensed commissary kitchen, Skilton said. Because selling street food - tacos and burgers, for example - on a public street is prohibited, an owner of a food truck now must negotiate with a private landowner to park at a certain spot for a certain amount of time. Somerville, for instance, worked out agreements with a Shell station near Seattle Pacific University and a property owner on Eastlake Avenue to sell food at those locations every day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. To put more vendors in high-density urban areas, the Seattle Department of Transportation wants to designate zones where curbside vending would be allowed during particular days and times. Vendors then would apply for a street-use permit to sell food in those spaces. If more than one vendor were interested in a location, a lottery would be held, according to city documents. Read the rest <here>

Today the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health launched a campaign to inform the public about a new L.A. City ordinance prohibiting smokers from lighting up in outdoor dining areas -- including restaurant patios, cafes, food courts, food carts and mobile food trucks. The law, which goes into effect March 8, 2011, strengthens the city's efforts to reduce residents' exposure to the harmful chemicals found in secondhand smoke. Los Angeles is the largest city in the nation to implement a smoke-free outdoor dining policy. "The vast majority of L.A. County residents are non-smokers -- 85.7 percent -- and data has shown that even many smokers prefer to dine in smoke-free settings," said Dr. Jonathan E. Fielding, MD, MPH, director and health officer of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. "This ordinance continues Los Angeles' commitment to protecting the health of our residents and reducing the risk of heart disease, cancer, emphysema and the many other diseases associated with tobacco smoke." The policy specifically prohibits smoking within 10 feet of outdoor dining areas, including food courts, as well as within 40 feet of food kiosks, food carts, and mobile food trucks in the City of Los Angeles. Beginning March 8, 2011, affected businesses are required to request that patrons not smoke within the designated distance of their business and post signage with specific phrasing and the international "no smoking" symbol. "The City of Los Angeles continues to set the pace for healthy living," said Mayor Villaraigosa. "Angelenos already enjoy smoke-free parks, beaches and farmers' markets and now they will be able to enjoy all the wonderful outdoor dining that L.A. has to offer without exposure to toxic secondhand smoke." The campaign features colorful outdoor transit ads placed throughout the city showcasing delicious and healthy food and proclaiming eating out better with "a side of fresh air." Patrons and business owners can also learn about the law through radio announcements, online ads and the informational website FreshAirDiningLA.com. "This is great news for the City of L.A. and we wanted the campaign to reflect that," said Fielding. "Nothing goes better with good food than a side of fresh air." Read the rest <here>

A food fight is breaking out in downtown San Francisco, with a group of restaurants squaring off against an incursion of food trucks that they say pose unfair competition. The rift broke out a month ago after a food-truck vendor called JapaCurry began parking in front of restaurants in a South of Market neighborhood, selling to-go meals during the busy lunch hour. "They just showed up right in front of us, and didn't even ask," said Jasmine Tran, a clerk at Tart to Tart, a bakery café on Mission Street. "It hurt our business, definitely." A dozen other nearby restaurants in the Mission and Second Street area signed a Jan. 21 complaint to San Francisco police asking to keep the vendor from parking so close to them. The complaint prompted the police to revoke JapaCurry owner Jay Hamada's permit for that street. Mr. Hamada disputes that he posed a business threat because his menu of mostly Japanese curry dishes isn't offered at any of the area's restaurants. "I feel sorry, but I don't think I'm taking their customers," said the 40-year-old Mr. Hamada, who started his mobile curry business in November with a $100,000 investment. Meanwhile, restaurateurs have expressed concern about a possible onslaught of food trucks under a new city ordinance designed to promote their growth. Some 65 to 70 currently ply the streets, according to a city official. "The food trucks are a threat to us," said Diane Tran, owner of Muffins, Muffins, a pastry and sandwich shop on Second Street and one of the restaurants that signed the police complaint against JapaCurry. "They park in front of us, take our customers and leave the truck running so we get the smell of gas and smoke in our shop. We wish they weren't around here, because we don't do well when they are." Read the rest <here>

Where is the proof that food trucks are causing financial distress to brick and mortar establishments?

Where is the proof that food trucks are causing financial distress to brick and mortar establishments? Read the rest <here> Richard Myrick is the Editor-in-Chief of Mobile Cuisine Magazine. An architect by degree, Richard began his career in real estate development and architectural planning. In September of 2010 he created Mobile Cuisine Magazine to fill an information void he found when he began researching how to start a mobile hotdog cart in Chicago.

Here's a great 4 part video documenting the food truck craze in the United States. Once I started watching, I couldn't stop 'till it was done...not recommended to watch on an empty stomach!

The PhyDough truck is serving up organic ice cream and cookies to lucky pups on the streets of L.A. In keeping with the city's 'people food' trucks, dog owners can find their pooch's mobile munchies on twitter. Check out this short clip:

According to Yum Yum Food Truck’s Facebook page, the City of Fort Worth has shuttered the downtown food trucks until after the Super Bowl.

 

So much for the Super Bowl being a great thing for businesses. I suppose that needs to be amended to include “unless it doesn’t fall in line with approved PR goals.” The city’s made downtown a “clean zone” during the Super Bowl run-up, prohibiting temporary signage and vending (among other things), citing some suspect “safety” concerns and trying to promote “good order and aesthetic quality.” Oddly enough, other cities don’t equate gourmet food trucks with a lack of “good order and aesthetic quality.” After all, if lots of people gathering at a food truck is a “safety” and “aesthetic quality” concern, one could take that to its logical-but-ridiculous conclusion and say that restaurants will also cause the same problems and should be temporarily shut down as well. Read the rest <here>

One of the world's most famous hymns to commerce, New York's thousands of street food vendors - and the fare they sell - reflect its eclectic ethnic mix. But as we find out, life on the streets can be harsh, belying the city's rich and glamorous image.

Part 1

Part 2