Food trucks are one of the hottest trends in the restaurant industry right now, according to the National Restaurant Association.
From Tyler Florence’s “Great Food Truck Race,” with its devoted fan base, to cities hosting “food truck wars,” the craze has momentum. A few area food truck owners are hoping sales will grow as the trend continues to rev up.
Harrisburg resident Chef Ed Monuteaux had his finger on the phenomenon’s pulse when he purchased his 21-foot-long truck, parked it on Walnut Street near 4th and flipped open the window to Chef Ed’s Lunch Mob.
“At first it was a tough go, but business eventually took off, and I’m holding my own right now,” he said.
Monuteaux, who spent eight years as a chef at Char’s Bella Mundo in Shipoke, sets himself apart from other lunch trucks with his unique and healthy offerings.
“I don’t prepare your average lunch truck stuff,” he said. “There are no hot dogs, cheese steaks or fries. Everything is homemade and I use lots of fresh vegetables.”
Among the more popular items are shrimp and crab croissants, fresh fish tacos and what Monuteaux calls “Asian hotpot.” The noodle dish contains fresh vegetables, lemongrass broth, sesame oil and shrimp, which he packs “to go” for peckish state workers to carry back to their desks.
A conversation about 2nd Street and the dearth of good cheese steaks got the wheels rolling on the EZ EATZ truck on 2nd Street in Harrisburg. Camp Hill couple Angela Klobusicky and Mike Ruell park their 25-foot vehicle in front of the Hilton during weekdays and move further up the street to cater to the late-night crowds on weekends. Their lunch menu is extensive, from homemade soups, hot dogs, sausages and, of course, the traditional Philly Cheese Steak “wiz wit” or without, cradled in a roll baked at Amoroso’s in Philadelphia.
When Camp Hill resident Port Dare decided he’d had enough of retail, he, too, bought a food truck to capitalize on the craze. “The Little Black Truck with the Big Flavors” set out to satisfy hungry patrons.
“When I was younger, I went to chef’s school at the Culinary Institute of America in New York, and I wanted to get back to my roots,” he said.
The attractive, 16-foot truck, festooned with a pink lady, is parked beside River Bottom Pottery located in a modest strip mall at 3809 Paxton St., where Dare spends his days pleasing many a palate.
“One of our most popular items is pulled pork BBQ, which I smoke for hours and serve in a delicious Carolina-style barbeque sauce.”
Those logging into Yelp seem to agree, as person after person raves about the sandwich on the popular review site. Dare could go head-to-head with the big chains, according to one Twitter user, who left a tip saying Dare’s half-pound Angus” is better than Five Guys.”
A consensus among all truckers is that the job can be grueling, with long hours.
“I start at midnight getting ready. Just because we’re not working in a traditional restaurant doesn’t mean we don’t have extensive prep work to do, and this even includes some late-night Wegman’s runs,” Monuteaux said.
On the plus side is the ability to pick up and go, if traffic slows to a crawl. “One of the best things is the portability of it,” Dare said. “If I’m not happy where I’m at, I can move. I signed a six-month lease for now. If that’s not a good spot–I can just move. You can’t have that with brick and mortar. They make you sign a five-year lease–minimum.”
