Cupcakes, anyone?

BY Denise Clay

The Buttercream cupcake truck is back in business and doing fine.

From a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich to start your day to a plate of jerk chicken and rice and beans to end it, nearly every cuisine has its own food truck here in Philadelphia.

To that list, you can also include dessert. Armed with a menu that includes cupcakes ranging from Red Velvet to Peanut Butter to Dulce de Leche, the Buttercream cupcake truck makes its way around the city, sharing cupcake goodness with everyone from radio disc jockey to newspaper reporters to students needing a little comfort food in the middle of finals week.

The truck is the brainchild of Kate Carrara, an attorney who decided that if the choice was taking (depositions) or baking (cupcakes), cupcakes had the edge. She bought a truck, modified it, and took her snacks on the road, according to her husband, Andy, who sometimes works in the truck.

"This is the first cupcake truck in the city," he said. "She had originally thought about starting a bakery, but she opted for a truck."

But while she opened a truck because she figured it would be easier to negotiate than a bakery, easy turned out to be relative, Andy Carrara said.

A trip on the Buttercream website takes you through the odyssey the couple went through to keep their cupcakes from going flat.

That quest included battles with the City of Philadelphia’s Licensing and Inspections bureau, licensing issues, and problems getting one simple question answered: Where can we park the truck?

The truck makes stops all over the city, including Temple University, radio station WXPN, the Philadelphia Inquirer building and LOVE Park in Center City.

But if you’re not there when Buttercream makes its weekly visit to your section of the city, you’re out of luck until the next week.

"We only go to each stop once a week," Andy Carrara said. "Doing it that way makes it more special. If the truck were there every day, you would take it for granted. This way, you can’t."

Buttercream’s cupcakes are $2 each or six for $10. To find out when Buttercream is coming to your section of the city, you can call 267-505-7486 or follow the truck on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/Buttercreamphl.

Denise can be reached at nuttyprofessor64@gmail.com

Sexy Green Truck replaces burgers with salads

By: Shannon McLaughlin

In 2008, Selim Zeka’s food truck was on its last legs. Competing with other burger and cheesesteak carts on Temple University’s campus, business was slow, and there was nothing to make the truck stand out among a long line of others outside the Student Center.

Enter Ben Schneible. Now a senior, Schneible was then a sophomore student at Temple’s Fox School of Business who had helped found the school’s Students for Responsible Business (SRB).He was struck by the number of trucks that all offered the same greasy fare – and he was looking for a project.

Schneible approached Zeka and Rudi Gurra, the truck’s co-owner, with a plan. He and another SRB member would make some quick suggestions for change based on market research, anecdotal observations around campus and insight as students themselves.

Three weeks later – in time for the annual campus Spring Fling, the 2008 theme of which focused on sustainability – Zeka’s truck had been painted green, was serving an entirely fresh, new menu, and had a new name: The Sexy Green Truck.

"We handed out coupons [at Spring Fling] and the line for the truck was down the street," Schneible said.
They estimate that business went up some 400 percent immediately following the grand re-opening.

The truck was originally going to be called The Green Truck, but Schneible said the group was surprised to hear from another sustainability-minded truck in California named the Go Green Truck.

After receiving a cease and desist letter, Schneible and his partner decided to tack on the "Sexy," which had already been painted under the truck’s countertop as an inside joke among staffers.

Schneible, who has experience with catering and whose mother is a graduate of the New England Culinary Institute, suggested that the truck take its menu in a greener direction. Why? Where did he get the idea?
"I’ve always paid attention to food," he said.

Soon the truck was as well known for its wraps, salads and vegetarian fare as for its bright green color.

Sustainability was also a big part of Schneible and SRB’s mission in remaking the Sexy Green Truck. By buying local, organic ingredients, Zeka is able to contribute to lowering carbon emissions by reducing food transportation.

The truck’s power source is tied into the grid right now, but Schneible has big plans for that too.

"We are looking into PECO wind," he said.

Buying locally also allows him to support nearby farmers and retailers.

"I try to bring in different produce," Zeka said.

The truck always offers organic coffee, spinach and yogurt, he said, and is well known for using only cage-free eggs.

"In the summer, the Amish bring [produce] by twice a week," he said. That usually enables him to offer local lettuce, cucumbers and other vegetables.

Three years later, Zeka says business is still booming. He estimates the truck serves nearly 300 people a day. He, his wife and two other chefs staff the 20-by-8 truck from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., 5 days a week. Between semester breaks and a summer vacation, the truck works all but about 8 weeks each year.

Students are still snapping up the pesto chicken and hummus wraps, Zeka said, which were immediately popular on the new menu in 2008. Paninis, pitas and wraps are his other most-popular items.
Schneible and SRB are still very much involved with the truck on a volunteer basis.

"We’re not trying to profit," Schneible said. He still talks with Zeka often, offering suggestions and networking opportunities.

As of now, the Sexy Green Truck remains the only truck with a focus on organic foods and sustainability on campus – and Zeka wouldn’t have it any other way.

"It’s unique to Temple," Zeka said.

Shannon can be reached at shannonm@temple.edu

Economics of food trucks

BY: Denamarie Ercolani

These tough economic times have spurred the popularity of food trucks for low-end entrepreneurs. Opening a food truck costs less than opening a restaurant, but is the risk any less?

It turns out that food truck costs are harder to predict -- gas and food prices are extremely volatile. Basic staples such as rice, corn and sugar are at all-time highs. Meanwhile, the increased worldwide demand and lack of production could cause domestic gas prices to reach $5 per gallon by 2012, according to the United States Energy Information Administration.

The major advantage of food trucks is mobility. The owner has the freedom to find hotspots throughout the city, and move when things cool.

Along with low capital expense – less electricity usage, smaller staffs, less insurance costs, the upside seems huge. But that freedom comes with the cost of transience, most notably the unstable fuel markets that can befoul a bottom line. This volatility could possibly cripple food truck profits.

Denamarie can be reached at tud11959@temple.edu

Neither wind nor rain

BY: Denise Clay

Rain might make the trek more challenging, but it doesn’t stop students from hitting their favorite food truck.

The rain was falling in sheets outside of the Pizza Shop truck at 13th and Montgomery, near the Student Activities Center (SAC) at Temple University.

But it didn’t stop Jamie from waiting under an umbrella for her lunch. Under normal circumstances, she would have been standing in front of the Sexy Green Truck nearby, but ...

"The line was too long," she said.

Because you’re being asked to eat outside, food truck owners are asking a lot of their student consumers. But as one truck owner, The Prince, said, mutual interest comes into play.

"They have to eat somewhere," he says. "We give them good food here. Business may drop off a little when it rains, but we still do okay."

Denise can be reached at nuttyprofessor64@gmail.com

Filling up with Cornbread

BY: Maggie Reynolds

Jennifer Merkle said the hardest part about driving a carriage is not being able to leave the horse all day.

"It makes it impossible to get any lunch, unless you’ve packed it," said Merkle, a driver for 76 Carriage Company.

Merkle and her horse and co-worker, "BB," have been a regular fixture on 5th and 6th streets in Philadelphia for two years now.

The solution to this problem has come in the form of a food truck, run by James "Cornbread" Brown.

"Cornbread saw that we were a captive audience, and parked right next to the carriage stands," said Sherry Derr, a driver of 76 Carriage Company. "On days when there aren’t very many rides, I get bored and hungry."

And although the drivers cannot pull their horses over to order from the truck, orders can be placed via a loud shout across the street.

"He wants us to yell what we want," said Derr, adding that Brown also wants to know whether the carriage drivers are paying with $5, $10 or $20.

Brown then leaves the truck, brings drivers their food and the change, and usually gets a tip for the effort. Serving mainly carriage drivers, he has perhaps carved out the most unique niche market of any food vendor in Philadelphia.

In recent months, construction on 5th Street has pushed out local street vendors, causing carriage drivers to rely on their wits for food.

"Mostly we just pack lunch," said Derr. "But we can’t wait for Cornbread to get back."

Maggie can be reached at tuc69736@temple.edu

Iron Chef Jose Garces talks tacos

BY: Shannon McLaughlin & Natalia Chiarelli

Philadelphia food trucks aren’t just cheesesteaks and gyros anymore. And they aren’t just limited to stationary cinder blocks during the Center City lunch rush, either. Need proof? None other than Iron Chef Jose Garces has taken the scene in a completely new direction.

Garces’ beer-cap-bedazzled taco truck, Guapos Tacos, has been making nocturnal weekend trips around the city since it launched in March. Typical spots include 2^nd and Poplar in Northern Liberties and between 20th and 21st Streets across from Whole Foods in Fairmount.

The truck is covered in 45,000 beer bottle caps and usually hits the streets between 7 p.m. and 2 a.m. Devotees have declared the tacos, traditionally thought of as street food, to be as sublime in the early evening as they are after a long night.

Garces was already well known as a celebrity restaurateur and winner of the Food Network’s “Next Iron Chef” well before he put plans for Guapos Tacos into motion. He’s already successfully launched more than a half dozen other restaurants throughout the city, with construction underway at an eighth property.

Moveable Feasts caught up with Chef Garces to discuss his latest nomadic gastronomical endeavor.

Moveable Feasts: What led you to expand into the food truck realm?

Chef Jose Garces: When I travel, I always make a point of sampling as many different foods as I can, and that often includes street food from trucks or other vendors. In particular, I enjoyed terrific, satisfying street food snacks in Mexico City while I was there doing research to open Distrito. I wanted to bring those vibrant flavors to Philadelphia, and a food truck seemed like a fun way to make these snacks accessible.

MF: How is managing the truck's business different from (and similar to) the standard restaurant management?

JG:  There is a different permitting system associated with a mobile food business, so that has been a learning experience for us.  Overall, though, the truck is wonderfully low maintenance – we load it up, prepare the food on the go, and share it with our friends.

MF: Do you feel that an Iron Chef-backed food truck has elevated the culinary scene in terms of trucks in the city?

JG:  There is a real food truck renaissance sweeping the nation right now, which is especially cool because it echoes the lively street food cultures in Europe and elsewhere in the world. Guapos Tacos is just another piece of that puzzle.

MF: Who is cooking at Guapos Tacos? Have they been inside other Garces Restaurant Group (GRG) kitchens in the past, or are they new employees?

JG: The Guapos Tacos team comes from our GRG kitchens – sous-chefs, chefs-de-cuisine, and occasionally, even me.

MF: What has the scene been like at the truck? How consistent has business been?

JG: We’ve been very lucky to experience such a positive response. Whenever possible, we try to let our guests know where we’ll be in advance, and we use social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to make sure that our whereabouts are available to anyone who wants to sample our food.  We’ve also tried to visit many different neighborhoods, so people understand the spirit of the truck – that we’ll come to them, rather than the other way around.

MF: What kinds of special events have been booked for the truck so far?

JG: The truck is already booked for a birthday party or two, a going-away party for a large company, and a wedding. We really want people to think of it for any occasion.

MF: Are there any plans to expand the truck's business or hours?

JG: We’re very new, so we’re really playing it all by ear at this point.  We love working private events, and we expect that to be our primary business, but it’s also been great fun to show up around the city and interact with people in that way.

MF: Are there any plans to launch any other trucks reflecting other restaurants in GRG?

JG: We don’t have plans for any other food trucks at this time, but we never say never.

Without a standalone website, Garces fans can follow the truck’s stops via its Twitterfeed, @guapostacos.

Shannon can be reached at shannonm@temple.edu / Natalia can be reached at natachiarelli@aol.com

Philly food trucks take on New York's best at Vendys

BY: Patrick Gordon

Mario Batali has been successful in the food industry as a chef and restaurateur for 30 years, so when he expresses an opinion on something, people tend to listen.

Case in point: the annual Vendy Awards, where Batali serves as a judge. Recognized as one of the top food events in New York City, the Vendys are an annual cook-off competition pitting the best food trucks in the Big Apple against each other for street vendor supremacy.  Nearly twenty food trucks compete in the annual event and vie for one of four awards - Rookie Vendor of the Year, Best Dessert, People’s Taste and the coveted Vendy Cup, awarded to the best food truck as judged on by a celebrity panel.

“It’s like the Oscars of food for the real New York,” Batali has said.

The Vendys originated in the Big Apple in 2006 as a fundraiser for the Street Vendor Project of the Urban Justice Center. The competition has since blossomed into a yearly highlight for hundreds of food vendors and connoisseurs up-and-down the Eastern Seaboard. More than 1,000 people bought tickets to last year’s event on Governors Island and enjoyed live music and unlimited food from 18 different vendors. Proceeds from the sale of each ticket (ranging from $80 to $220) went to the Street Vendor Project, earmarked directly to assist immigrant vendors with legal representation and advocacy efforts.

 “There really is a unique atmosphere, almost like you are at a carnival,” said Yolanda Simmons, a hot dog cart vendor based in Atlantic City who has attended the Vendys. “I like seeing what different people are doing, the different types of food and styles. Being in the business, it also gives me a chance to see new things that I may be able to improve upon with my cart.”

Simmons witnesses the day-to-day tribulations of running a sidewalk business firsthand, so she also appreciates the newfound fanfare of her craft.

“I’m glad people enjoy the trucks because it wasn’t always like that,” Simmons said. “We weren’t celebrated. People used to think we were a nuisance, but that’s not the case anymore. We now have our own day.”

Thanks to a partnership between the Street Vendor Project and Philly Homegrown, an initiative of the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation, three food trucks from Philadelphia were invited to the Vendy Awards last year. The trio of trucks marked the first time vendors from outside New York City participated in the competition.

“It was a neat experience to show everyone what we could do,” said Tom McCusker, owner and operator of Honest Tom’s Taco Shop, one of the three food trucks invited to the competition. “They hauled the trucks up on two flatbeds. It was interesting to see the [best] food trucks of New York City all in one place, and Governors Island was beautiful.”

Along with Honest Tom’s Taco Shop, Denise’s Soul Food and Birchrun on a Roll represented Philadelphia in the contest.

“I think food trucks in Philadelphia are really starting to boom,” McCusker said. “From what people come and tell me, there should be another 20 or 30 trucks opening this year of all different types of foods.”

The idea of a food truck competition is catching on elsewhere as well. Los Angeles held its first Vendy Awards last year and had more than 1,000 food trucks nominated for consideration.

Philadelphia, too, will get involved with the Vendy circuit later this year when the city hosts its own food truck cook-off. Details of when and where remain elusive, but the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation is committed to hosting the competition sometime in late 2011.

“Philadelphia is a natural choice for a Vendy Awards and other celebratory gatherings that shine a light on Philly’s homegrown and diverse food cultures,” GPTMC President and CEO Meryl Levitz said. “Residents and visitors alike are eating their way through the Philadelphia region like never before.”

Patrick can be reached at pgordon@temple.edu

Strong oversight of food trucks in 'burbs

BY: Danielle Lynch

WEST CHESTER, Pa. – In order to establish a food truck in West Chester, there are several rules and regulations an individual must follow, according to the borough’s ordinances.

First, food truck owners need to fill out an application for a seller’s license with the borough. On the application, the owners must include their home address, name of their organization or company, hours of operation, vehicle information, driver’s license number, insurance card number and indicate whether they’ve been convicted of any crime other than a minor traffic violation.

“A license will not be issued to any person who has been convicted of a felony, misdemeanor or a crime of any kind involving moral turpitude, and such person shall not be allowed to engage in canvassing and soliciting in the borough,” states the borough’s peddling and soliciting ordinance.

The owners need to have a Pennsylvania tax identification number and must also include their food vendor’s license number, which is available through Chester County.

Once the application is complete, the owners must write a $100 check to the borough and provide two photos of themselves – taken within six months of the application date, according to borough’s procedure for seller’s licenses.

“Each person that is selling needs a license,” states a copy of the borough’s procedure. “So if there are four people on the hot dog truck each one needs a license.”

Food trucks are permitted in the Town Center Zoning District of the borough. If food truck owners want to set up on private property, they have to get permission from the property owner. Otherwise, food truck owners have the right to set up in public areas as long as it’s not in the right of way, according to borough documents.

“Private groups, such as the Recreation Department and the Chamber of Commerce have control of the vending during their events and can license them accordingly,” borough documents say. “For example, during the Halloween Parade, which is after 7 p.m., vending can take place in the area of the special event only with the approval of the Recreation Department.” 

If approved by borough officials, an application for a food truck is valid for one year. Food truck owners are not allowed to change the category of goods sold while the application is in effect, according to the borough’s ordinance.

The borough manager, Ernie McNeely, has the right to suspend a food truck license if an owner does not comply with standards of conduct and other responsibilities, according to the borough’s ordinance. Some of those responsibilities include carrying a seller’s license at all times; not entering private property without permission; and misrepresenting himself or herself to the public.

Food truck owners, however, have the right to appeal a license suspension. The owners must request an appeal hearing with Borough Council, who can then reinstate the license; affirm the revocation of the license; or affirm or modify the suspension for up to five years.

Some people are not required to get a seller’s license in the borough, including farmers selling their own produce. Exemptions also apply to people who are selling goods and merchandise donated by an owner with the end result being a charitable donation, according to the borough ordinance.

People who are licensed by the state to engage in solicitation, such as real estate brokers, insurance brokers, and securities brokers, are also exempt from borough licenses.

In addition, the ordinance and application does not apply to political campaign workers. And it does not apply to individuals under the age of 16 who may be taking orders for newspaper deliveries, candy or Girl Scout cookies.

Lastly, food truck owners are responsible for trash removal and cleanup within 15 feet of their stand, according to the borough ordinance. If needed, the owners must also wash the sidewalk area near the stand.

Danielle can be reached at dmlynch07@gmail.com

Food trucks in the 'burbs

BY: Danielle Lynch

WEST CHESTER, Pa. – Rick VanNewkirk stumbled across the food truck business by accident.

“My brother-in-law wanted to invest in something and decided on food trucks,” said VanNewkirk, the owner of Curbies Catering Carts, Inc. “He financed (the truck), and I said I’ll try it.”

VanNewkirk, a Boothwyn, Delaware County resident, said the food truck has been in West Chester for the past three years. For 25 years he had worked for a heating and air conditioning business and bought the food truck from his brother-in-law last year.

VanNewkirk said his truck, located on South Church Street between University and Rosedale avenues, is open for business during the school year. During the summer months, he does construction and excavating work.

“I like the social aspect,” VanNewkirk said of his food truck work. “I get to know a lot of people and become friends with them. I’ve met people on campus from all around the world – it’s really interesting.”

VanNewkirk said he enjoys seeing people’s reactions when they purchase his food, such as the cheese fries. He said his specialty dish is breakfast because customers can purchase it at any time of the day. “I like to see [the customers’] smiling faces,” he said.

Curbies is open from 7:30 to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 7:30 to 2 p.m. on Friday during the school year. His wife, Kathy, stops by to help out during the busy hours of the day, which is between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

VanNewkirk said it’s not difficult to work in a tiny space. The most difficult thing, he said, is working during the winter months because he has to keep the food warm.

Josh Taylor, a West Chester University student, said he enjoys buying food from Curbies. He said the food truck reminds him of a diner because he gets “food with a personal touch.”

“I like it because I can get a good cup of regular coffee,” he said. “They give me good food.”

After getting his order, Taylor thanked VanNewkirk and told him he’d stop by again soon.

Across the street at Alexander’s Lunch Box, the owner, Arife Yilmaz, said she enjoys interacting with her customers. Yilmaz, an Upper Darby native who was born in Turkey, has owned the food truck for about two years.

Yilmaz said the food truck has been in West Chester for about 20 years; she took it over when the former owner moved to Texas. Similar to VanNewkirk, Yilmaz said she wasn’t bothered by the small working space, which is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The interior is “suitable for two people,” said Samantha Biguers, a West Chester University student and employee at Alexander’s Lunch Box. “It’s not that bad.”

Near Alexander’s Lunch Truck is a coffee truck known as Grateful Beans.  The truck has been in West Chester for about 14 years and is affiliated with Fennario Coffee & Tobacco shop, located in the 100 block of North Church Street in town.

"We’re definitely not like Starbucks,” said Brendan Greene, one of the employees at Grateful Beans. “Our coffee is sold at fair-trade which separates us from Starbucks.”

Greene, a West Chester resident, said the majority of the organic coffee at his truck is from Mexico. The truck also sells Colombian, Brazilian and Guatemalan blends. It’s open from 6:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The truck offers a lot of specialty espresso drinks and also sells muffins and other baked goods.  

Similar to the owners and employees at the other food trucks in town, Greene said he wasn’t bothered by the tiny workplace. The downside, he said, is working in cold weather.

“It’s easier to work in a small space,” he said. “It’s easy to keep clean. It’s so nice and small and we love our customers.”

Danielle can be reached at dmlynch07@gmail.com

The American dream ... on wheels

BY: Denise Clay

Even if you walk away from the pink truck that houses Denise’s Caribbean Soul Food, you can’t get away from the smell.

Take Denise Severe. She started selling platters of her trademark dishes – including fried fish, oxtails, jerk chicken and collard greens – from her Philadelphia home when she first arrived here from Haiti. The food was such a hit with those who came to her home for weekly dinners that she decided to take the show on the road.

“I bought my first food truck in 1996,” she said. “I have two now.”

She’s not alone. At a time when Americans are willing to try any type of food at least once, immigrants looking for a way to make their mark in their new home are taking a variety of foods – including sushi, lo mien, curried chicken and quesadillas – to the streets to satisfy that need.

Some, like Dien Vinh, owner of Tommy’s Food Truck on Temple University’s main campus, are even adding their spin to American food to try and get consumers to see it in a different way. Vinh, a native of Vietnam, decided to take a chance on feeding the university’s students through the help of a friend.

“A friend of mine sold me this truck,” he said. “It had been here for a long time and we do well here, especially at breakfast.”

People like Severe and Vinh are part of a growing trend, according to Future of Small Business, a report released by Intuit Inc. and the Institute of the Future. Immigrants make up the fastest growing segment of small business owners, according to the report, and immigrants will make up a sizable portion of the small business base by 2017.

According to the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, small business startup rates are higher among the 36 million immigrants in the United States than they are among the native-born. Immigrant women like Severe are 57 percent more likely to start a business than native-women, and immigrant men, like Vinh, are 71 percent more likely to do so, said Robert Fairlie, an economist who produces the Kauffman Index.

Part of that willingness to take a chance on creating a business on the part of the immigrant community comes from the barriers that meet them when searching for a job. Language, skill sets, and other things sometimes cause immigrants to forge their own path, according to the report.

But once these immigrants figure things out and start a business like a food truck, it not only helps the immigrants’ community, but it also helps the nation’s economy, said Steven King of the Institute for the Future.

“Because immigrants can easily navigate “soft trade barriers” – culture, language, unusual rules or ways of doing things overseas – they increase trade and foreign investment in the United States,” he said.


Denise can be reached at nuttyprofessor64@gmail.com

Staying healthy, even at a food truck

BY: Natalia Chiarelli

It’s noon in West Philadelphia, and students and medical employees are hungry. For more than a few, that hunger will be quelled by a quick purchase from a local food cart.

But with that speediness comes a tradeoff. Anyone who’s eaten from a food truck can attest that the food overwhelmingly leans toward the unhealthy and fattening variety.   

And despite the variety of healthy food trucks that seem to be pervading the scene in Philadelphia, it can still be challenging to make nutritious choices. 

“We’re conditioned through human history to prefer those sort of really palatable foods,” said Nicole Patience, a clinical dietician at Temple University’s Student Health Services. “The things that are more calorie-dense, in caveman days they were the things that were more highly prized.”

Balancing this genetically driven urge for high calorie food with the limited budget and time many professionals and students have can lead to the dreaded “freshman fifteen,” for example, or a diet lacking in nutrition. 

“Access to very cheap, high calorie food is so easy. It’s just so abundant,” Patience said. “It can be hard for us to moderate what we eat when it’s all around us all the time.”

It’s particularly hard for students, many of whom have become responsible for their diets for the first time in their lives.

“It’s so tempting, alluring to just ‘quick grab-and-go, and my belly is full,’” she said. “Just because the belly is full doesn’t mean that our nutrition needs are met.”

That’s why the Temple Student Health Services offers tips, information and support to those concerned about their nutrition.

There are several useful ways to curb irrational, impulsive food choices at your favorite truck.

“A good way to stick to what you wanted is to pre-order so you’re not standing there smelling all that great food,” said Patience. “A lot of the trucks have healthy options, but when you smell the french fries wafting out, that impulse when we’re hungry.”

The healthy options may not be as limited as some hungry customers may think, either.

“There are some wonderful soups from the Asian or Vietnamese,” said Patience.  “The Korean Truck has the teppanyaki, even a piece of pizza with vegetable toppings.” 

For some, food trucks end up having a positive influence in people’s lives. Look no further than the many fresh fruit and smoothie trucks in front of the Temple Hospital on Broad Street.

“I probably would not eat nearly as much fruit if I didn’t have the habit of coming here,” said Noelle Palmira, 36. “I don’t have the time to cut and wash the fruit, and when I do buy it at home it ends up going bad.”

For Palmira, eating healthy is easier with a strawberry and banana smoothie from Liem Nguyen.

For the last 15 years, Nguyen has operated Liem's Fruit Salad Truck on N. Broad Street and W. Allegheny Avenue. Unlike other truck owners who rely on greasy foods for sales, Nguyen takes pride in his decision to keep his fare nutritious.

“I keep them healthy,” Nguyen said.

Natalia can be reached at natachiarelli@aol.com

Food truck permits - keeping it legal

BY: Denamarie Ercolani

Food trucks are hotter than ever in Philadelphia, but the city has rules to keep expansion in check. Owners of food trucks in the city are limited to certain areas and districts depending on which permit(s) they obtain.

Meanwhile other cities, such as New York, have experienced turmoil within their food truck movement. There are over 5,000 mobile food vendors in New York City. These vendors are free to roam the city unlike Philadelphia.

Though trucks are a small business, they require a significant investment. Costs include the truck, permit acquisition, supplies, security and insurance.

Food truck experience is longer a prerequisite for success in the food truck business. Restaurant owners, such as Jose Garces, are seeking an extra boost in revenue and sales without having to pay a high monthly rent. Although overhead is lower, the permits needed to legally operate a food truck are pricy to get and tedious to obtain.

In the city of Philadelphia, a food truck is required to have:

1)         Motor Vehicle Vendor License, $300,

2)         Non-Permanent Food License, $150

3)         Business Privilege License, $300.

To speed up the permit process, the food truck vendor can obtain a Business Tax Account number. If this number is presented, the vendor can secure a Motor Vehicle Vendor and Business Privilege Licenses on the same day according to the Department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I).

The Motor Vehicle Vendor Licenses expires at the end of December each year. The Non-Permanent Food License also expires annually during the month of April. The Business Privilege does not expire; however, the Department of Public Health must inspect and approve the truck prior to the vendor receiving certification.
 

(Clip deals with with permit issues in Ohio)

Inspectors determine whether a vendor has met standards stipulated in a 13-page document of code of the Mobile Food Vending Unit-Plan Submission Guide.

According to the Department of Public Health, the guidelines for mobile food vendors regulate the size of trucks, as well as the food preparation surfaces, sinks, freezers, and cookers.

Prior to construction and fabrication of the truck, all new mobile food vending units are required to have properly prepared plans drawn to scale submitted and approved by the Office of Food Protection. 

A Food Establishment Self-Inspection Checklist is provided in which owners have to self-inspect their trucks for rodent infestation, food contamination and maintain sanitary utensils and cooking equipment. They also have to monitor employee hygiene, such as the washing of hands, pulled back hair, etc. 

All food handling requires that an individual within a valid City of Philadelphia Food Establishment Personnel Food Safety Certificate be present during vending unit operation.

Maura Kennedy, director of strategic initiatives at the Department of Licenses and Inspections explained that they do not write the vending code, they just enforce these regulations set by City Council.

Within the city, there are certain areas where vendors are allowed to park their trucks while a permit and fee are needed in others.

“We have special vending districts within the city, but the only one that permits truck vending is University City. The fee for a motor vehicle truck in this area is $2,750 a year and it expires in December. Otherwise, if they are not vending in this area, they can set up on a street that is not on the Prohibited Streets List as long as they abide by the traffic regulations concerning parking,” said Kennedy.

Unlike New York City, Philadelphia has approximately 250 licensed food trucks according to the department of licenses and inspections records.

There is no limit to the number of operating food trucks in the city, but in University City, only 75 truck vendors are permitted.

Although Philadelphia requires vendors to obtain permits that only allow them to park and operate in certain areas, food truck entrepreneurs want to be able to roam the city. The city is weary on what tension and hostility the ability to roam could cause.

Denamarie can be reached at tud11959@temple.edu