The number of food trucks has risen rapidly in the three years since they’ve been allowed in Minneapolis. To my knowledge five businesses started as food trucks and have since opened (or are working on opening) bricks and mortar locations: Foxy Falafel, Turkey To-go, World Street Kitchen, Smack Shack (any day now…), and Gastrotruck. I suspect that we will continue to see food trucks expand into restaurants. Also, I wonder if neighborhood restaurants will use the food trucks as a stepping stone into the downtown market. Northeast establishments such as Mayslacks, Anchor Fish & Chips, & Stanley’s opened food trucks that serve the downtown office rush. I would bet these types of restaurants would open a downtown location once they get the DT office workers hooked on their fare. A bricks & mortar location would allow them to serve more customers year-round.
I mostly wanted to start a food truck thread to share this excellent Jon Tevlin column, In downtown lunch wars, it's skyways vs. food trucks. Apparently the food truck owners have formed the ‘Minnesota Food Truck Association’ to fight for their interests.
Doug Sams says some restaurateurs feel the trucks have "hijacked" some of their customers, costing them as much as 30 percent of their summer traffic.
So this is what happens when the goat belly and ox tongue people bump up against the bread bowl and MSG buffet people. A culinary clash.
"I understand the fear-based reasoning, because this business has been taking it in the shorts," said food czar Andrew Zimmern, the famous "Bizarre Foods" face behind AZ Canteen. "But the fact is, half the restaurants in the skyway are serving some of the worst food in the city. They are coasting on convenience."
"The only restaurants that should be worried about food trucks are bad ones," said Zimmern. "They are already dead, they just don't know it yet."
