| Vendors drive traffic but rev up operator aggression
By LISA
JENNINGS
“A lot of cities are more strict, they don’t want roach coaches,” said Young Chang, owner of a href="http://www.yurijapanesecafe.com/">Yuri Japanese Café in Los Angeles. “But they want trucks like ours. It’s trendy.” Chang launched a truck in early spring offering the restaurant’s top-selling rice bowls with steak, chicken or tofu, as well as spicy red-tuna rolls wrapped in sesame leaves. “So many people came into the restaurant and asked when I was going to open another location, so I thought, if I get my brand on a truck, I can go to them,” he said. Chang is also leasing his truck and, he said, so far, it has cost him less than $20,000 to get on the road. In New York, however, vendors say mobilizing a truck is considerably more expensive, in part because permits are so difficult to get. Vendors say the city is issuing no new permits to keep the number of food truck and cart vendors under control. Operators can get on a waiting list, but many instead lease permits from out-of-business operators.  | | Thomas DeGeest, owner of New York’s Wafels and Dinges truck, said his new truck cost $10,000, and nearly $25,000 to customize. |
Thomas DeGeest, owner of the Wafels and Dinges trucks in Manhattan, offering Belgian waffles, or wafels, said a black market is developing for two-year permits, which typically range in price from $10,000 to $15,000. “A lot of run-of-the-mill vendors are being priced out of the market,” he said. Business is going well for DeGeest, commonly known as “the Wafel Guy,” who recently launched his second truck. Unlike the first, a 1968 step van prone to mechanical failures, the new truck is a state-of-the-art vehicle, with a custom-built kitchen with wafel ovens, service windows on both sides, awnings that flip up into menu boards, and built-in wall speakers to play satellite radio music at events. DeGeest said the truck cost about $10,000, and close to another $25,000 to customize. Beyond the expense of the trucks and permits, vendors say, the unwritten rules of the road can be even more difficult to navigate, as trucks battle for territory, and mobile vendors square off with brick-and-mortar operators who don’t appreciate the competition. DeGeest said he generally makes a point of not stopping his truck near restaurants and vendors in general try to avoid congregating in areas that could draw the wrath of restaurateurs who might complain to city officials. Lao, of Rickshaw Dumplings, said he requires his staff to make a production of sweeping the truck stop site before and after doing business there, and taking all garbage with them when they leave, to avoid complaints by local residents. In San Francisco, permit requirements vary, depending on whether the vendor parks on public or private property. City ordinances prohibit trucks from operating too close to schools. Portland, Ore., on the other hand, has a vibrant mobile food scene, and though health officials strictly regulate and inspect mobile food vendors, the businesses are welcomed. Some parking lot owners invite vendors to park on certain days to create a food court on wheels, health officials said. Bo Kwon, owner of Koi Fusion PDX, a truck offering Korean tacos similar to Kogi, launched his business last month, after spending about $90,000 on his truck. He hopes to get a second truck on the road within six months, and, eventually, open a restaurant. “With the economy, this has become an outlet for a lot of chefs these days,” said Kwon. “My goal isn’t necessarily about revenue, but to create my brand and identity.—ljenning@nrn.com |
