Food trucks sound fabulous on paper, but these days they’re doing far more for the branding of a business than they are for the bottom line.
Ask food truck entrepreneur Adrian Niman, whose truck, Food Dudes (647-340-3833), is in high demand for festivals, trade shows and even corporate promotional events.
“The food truck to this day has been my smartest business decision, just based on what it can do for our brand,” says Niman, who parlayed an established catering biz into a truck before launching eateries Food Dudes Pantry (24 Carlaw, at Lake Shore) and Rasa (196 Robert, at Harbord, 647-350-8221, thefooddudes.com).
“But those trying to get into the food business by solely having a food truck – it’s just not realistic in Toronto at this point in time.”
It used to be novel for a food truck to go bricks-and-mortar in Toronto, but the line between mobile eateries and restaurants is blurring – largely out of necessity.
The recent boom in food trucks may mean more diners are thinking of them as a dining option, but increased visibility doesn’t solve the problem of scarce daytime service opportunities and a long off-season. With newbie owners continuing to leap into an increasingly packed market governed by tight rules, the bubble looks increasingly likely to burst.
“There are so many trucks out there, I figure too much time and energy are spent trying to get the few spots that are available,” says Gourmet Gringos co-founder Krystian Catala.
While he says Gourmet Gringos used to be invited to sell at the Sony Centre twice a week, increased competition means they might get scheduled once a month now.
Catala and his partner are sidestepping the problem by turning to indoor franchises they’ve opened four Gourmet Gringos in the past 16 months (1384 Bathurst, at Helena, 647-349-1900, and others, gourmetgringos.com). Come summer, he says, the food truck will mainly be limited to the festival circuit and occasionally serve as a “walking billboard” for their new restaurants.
Great food alone is no guarantee that a truck will succeed. Aisha Mohamed and her husband, Ahmad Duale, launched their Somali food truck, Kal & Mooy last year with the hope of one day opening a restaurant.
Though the couple now have that stationary spot – a small kiosk inside the Queen Live Fresh Food Market (238 Queen West, at John, 647-463-4626, kalandmooy.com), they’re not sure where the road leads from here.
“I don’t know if we’ll sell [the food truck]. I don’t know what’ll happen to the people who support us,” says Mohamed.
“We’re thinking give it another year and see what happens.”
Mohamed and Duale are considering trading the loyal customer base and novelty appeal of their beloved truck for the stability of the tiny, hidden-away kiosk. There’s no curb visibility or seating, but it’s what their budget will allow they’ve already spent $100,000 getting their truck up and running.
Adding to the strain is the $7,000 or so they’re about to pay to renew their curbside service permit, which allows them access to just a few service spaces downtown.
“What we can do? We have to [renew] it. We have no choice,” she says. “Still, the laws are the what they are.”
A few owners have hung up their truck keys permanently, including Let’s Be Frank‘s Simon Colyer and Christa Muio, who made the transition to a permanent hot dog shop in January (460 Spadina, at College, 416-519-7256, lets-be-frank.ca) and put the truck on the market.
More are likely to follow, says Colyer, pointing to the food truck scene in Hamilton, which has seen similarly explosive growth. “Where you had 12 trucks last year, you might have 30 this year,” he says. “Everyone’s going, ‘Oh, we’re not making any money.’ In that situation, a lot of people will have closed their doors in a year or two.”
For now, the owners of trucks are repurposing them as marketing tools rather than money-makers. “It’s funky, it’s fun – people will know us more,” Mohamed says of their little blue truck. “We keep it so people know we exist.”
Meanwhile, at Rasa, Niman will soon be setting up a service window for street-style eats that looks just like a food truck – one that’s protected from the weather and securely located on private property.
REVIEWS
LET’S BE FRANK
Rating: NNN
After turning festivals and sidewalks into a sausage fest (so to speak), these tube steak purveyors are bringing the party to their College and Spadina snack shop, which aims to stay open until 3 am most nights. The dogs, available as bite-sized sliders or full-length versions, are Nathan’s Famous franks so you get that essential hit of ballpark nostalgia – though you probably stuck to Heinz and French’s toppings as a kid, instead of mac ‘n’ cheese and bacon bits (the Mac Daddy, $4.49/$8.85) or chopped egg, kimchi and spicy mayo (the Korean BBQ Dog, $3.99/$7.95). Don’t sleep on the sides – the sloppy-looking chili cheese fries ($4.99) feature an impossibly dense, smooth ragù and a velvety cheese sauce.
460 Spadina, at College, 416-519-7256, lets-be-frank.ca
GOURMET GRINGOS
Rating: NN
This St. Clair and Bathurst taqueria started out as the prep kitchen for its eponymous food truck. Then, toward end of 2013, the front room got a few tables and chairs. At the service counter, eight proteins are available as sparsely dressed tacos or burritos. The beef short rib and pork carnitas ($6.95 for two) have flavour but are noticeably dry, while the oily, crumbly chorizo could use more kick. Far and away my favourite is the fish taco ($8.95 for two), which feature a generous chunk of beer-battered mahi mahi piled high with purple cabbage slaw and smothered in mayo. It’s lowbrow but hits the spot – in short, ideal street food.
1384 Bathurst, at Helena, 647-349-1900, and others, gourmetgringos.com
KAL & MOOY
Rating: NNNN
The lunch-friendly eats served by Toronto’s first Somali food truck have found a permanent parking spot inside the slowly rebuilding Queen Live Fresh Food Market at St. Patrick Square. The menu follows a simple formula: slow-cooked meats (chicken, goat or beef) and vibrant fresh veggies on rice or flatbread (like pan-fried sabaya or spinach-infused anjera). It’s all brought together by their complexly flavoured, simmered-for-hours house-made sauces (customers have begun clamouring to buy them in bottles) perfect for dipping with their excellent samosas ($2 each) or sprinkling on dishes like soor ($9.50), a savoury squash-and-vegetable stew on a bed of white corn porridge.
238 Queen West, at John, 647-463-4626, kalandmooy.com.
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