It is a sunny fall day in downtown Milwaukee and you see a legion of brightly colored food trucks cruising the streets in search of potential customers.
These wheeled kitchens are the latest reincarnation of the hot dog, chestnut and pretzel wagons which populated the streets of New York in the 1950s. You can now dine on gourmet food prepared by the latest up-and-coming chef while window shopping on Wisconsin Avenue, Water Street or in the Third Ward.
Many of these mobile gourmets have their regular locations in the community and their customers know where to find them. Others cruise the streets and boulevards or locate adjacent to a street festival or other community event to attract customers. Many food truck owners use social media and post on Facebook or Twitter to announce their location. This strategy works in areas where there are high-rise office buildings. You can dine on Mexican street tacos, Korean barbecue, hamburgers, Southern comfort food or the latest fusion offerings.
An example of this phenomenon in Milwaukee is Falafel Guys. These restaurateurs started out selling their specialties from their yellow and blue food truck in 2012. Their specialty is Middle Eastern food, as indicated by their name, but you can enjoy other dishes such as fried eggplant, shawarma, Israeli cucumber salad and hummus. Their truck was so successful, owners Chrissy and Ron Stroli opened a restaurant by the same name in Thiensville that features a full dinner menu. They are regular purveyors at events such as Gathering on the Green and Taste of Mequon, and at the Milwaukee County Zoo.
Food truck entrepreneurs initially invest more than $100,000 for their mobile restaurants. They can ply their craft and sharpen their culinary skills while navigating the busy streets of America’s major cities, including New York, Los Angeles, Portland and Seattle. These wheeled restaurants have unlimited seating and their target market is anyone who is hungry. They move where the customers are, park their truck and start taking orders. The average monthly gross income for these entrepreneurs is $9,000. Some owners average $14,000 a month in cash and credit card income. Their net income is dependent on their fuel, food and other operating expenses.
In recent episodes of “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives,” Guy Fieri visited with food truck entrepreneurs in Toronto, Canada; California; and other locales. One food truck in Key West, Florida positioned itself on a small parcel of land. Its local customers and tourists arrive daily for freshly prepared seafood dishes. No reservations are required. There’s no valet parking, no linen napkins and tablecloths, and no impatient servers. Just get in line and wait for your food to be prepared and served through the counter window on a disposable plate.
This phenomenon is part of our expanding mobile economy. These entrepreneurs don’t advertise in the local paper or magazines, but they offer Groupons, and they mostly thrive on word-of-mouth, the Internet and satisfied palettes. Their customers are attracted by their unique offerings, prepared with farm fresh ingredients each day. It is not unusual to see 10 or more trucks lined up along the road across from a construction site awaiting the hungry herd of tradespeople at noon.
Numerous wheeled crafters of unique cuisine will continue to travel the streets of our major cities providing their offerings. These chefs have a mobile laboratory from which to market and test their recipes on the general public.
So park your car, place your order at the window and be ready to treat your taste buds to some tasty cuisine.
