Food trucks have been enjoying great popularity
in the United States, even having their own show on Food Network. The food
truck movement has finally made its way to the Fun Coast. In the Greater
Daytona Beach Area, we can now enjoy individual food trucks as well as food
truck ‘rallies’ from Ormond to New Smyrna Beach.
A Little Food Truck History
The Texas chuck wagon is a precursor to the
American food truck Food consisted of dried beans, coffee, cornmeal, greasy
cloth-wrapped bacon, salt pork, beef, usually dried or salted or smoked, and
other easy to preserve food stuffs. Yum!
Then there was the lunch wagon in the late 1800’s
selling sandwiches, pies, and coffee business employees in the city. Later
versions of the food truck were mobile canteens, which were created in the late
1950s. These mobile canteens operated on stateside army bases.
Finally, mobile food trucks, nicknamed
"roach coaches" have been around for years, serving construction
sites, factories, and other blue-collar locations.
The Gourmet Food Truck movement started in big
cities like New York and Los Angeles. It spread throughout the United States,
and now can be found in the suburbs and small towns. Characteristic of food trucks
is a small, specialized menu, gourmet food items (often a twist on old
favorites), and a tiny crew that cooks and serves in various locales.
In our area, you will find food trucks more
often than not in the parking lot of local brew pubs, such as Tomoka Brewery
Co. Going to a food truck rally is all kinds of
fun! You can pick from a variety of very reasonably priced food items from
different trucks. There is usually music and a lot of people. A happy
atmosphere accompanies these events!
The next food truck rally will be in Ormond
Beach on July 21 – check it out here. The best way to be informed about various food
truck appearances and rallies is to “like” their Facebook Pages. Here are a
few:
