The Big Cheese shared the big news on twitter yesterday afternoon:
“breaking news… we’re working on a brick and mortar that will open in the very near future in Dupont”
You can see the Big Cheese’s menu here.
Updates when an exact location is known. Think they’ll do well as a brick and mortar spot?
Earlier in the week The Daily Meal released their 2013 list of 101 best food trucks in America. They explain their methodology here. DC trucks that made the list were:
#78 Rito Loco
#72 DC Slices
#66 Red Hook Lobster Pound
#45 Pepe Food Truck
#32 Basil Thyme
#3 Fojol Brothers
So it’s been a couple years since we looked at our favorite trucks and lots of new ones have hit the streets since then. So I’m curious what are your favorites for 2013? (If possible please include roughly how expensive a meal at your favorite costs.) Anyone have a favorite that is no longer on the road in 2013?
901 G Street NW, Photo courtesy of DC Library
From a press release:
Food for thought is taking on a whole new meaning this summer at Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library.
For a limited time, members of the Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington will be serving up lunch on Wednesdays outside the library at 901 G Street NW. It’s the second year the food truck association and the library have partnered together for the weekly program, called Books & Bites.
District residents and downtown workers can grab lunch at the food trucks, relax at special seating just outside of the library and enjoy the library’s free WiFi and other services.
“We are thrilled to be partnering with the Food Truck Association again this summer,” said Chief Librarian Ginnie Cooper. “Just like the different food trucks offer people variety, the Library offers something for everyone. I love seeing people finding good reads and good food at their Library.”
The trucks that will be parked at the library will be announced on Wednesday mornings using social media.
“Books & Bites at the Library helps draw new people to the library – some of whom may have not visited the beautiful building before – and make the area more active and vibrant,” said Doug Povich, chairman of the Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington.
Ed. Note: Food trucks are there Wednesdays from around 11:30 am to to about 1:30 pm.
Photo by PoPville flickr user JoshBassett|PHOTOGRAPHY
From The Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington:
Food trucks today thanked members of the DC Council Committee on Business, Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (BCRA) for rejecting Mayor Vincent Grays’s proposed new food truck regulations.
“We’re deeply grateful to Councilmembers Graham, Grosso, Alexander, Cheh and Committee Chairman Orange for their strong support,” said Doug Povich, Chairman of the Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington and co-owner of Red Hook Lobster Pound-DC.
“We’re ready to work with the District and community to make the needed revisions to the current proposal. We hope the Council will be able to consider an improved version of these regulations as soon as possible.”
If adopted as currently written, May Gray’s proposed regulations result in fewer choices, less competition, food trucks closing and food truck employees losing jobs.
“The committee is absolutely right to recommend that the full council reject these anti-competitive regulations, which contain harmful and unnecessary restrictions on food-truck entrepreneurs’ ability to serve their customers and earn an honest living,” said Bert Gall, director of the Institute for Justice’s National Street Vending Initiative. “We urge the city to take this opportunity to create commonsense regulations that are focused only on the government’s proper role in protecting public health and safety, not the unconstitutional purpose of limiting competition.”
1100 3rd Street, NE
This could be cool – from a liquor license posted at 3rd and L Street, NE:
New outdoor Tavern with Food Trucks serving a variety of fare with a seating capacity for 50 patrons and total occupancy load of 200. Entertainment Endorsement featuring live and acoustic music.
Sunday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm, Monday – Wednesday 4:00 pm – 12:00 am, Thursday & Friday 12:00 pm – 2:00 am, Saturday 8:00am – 2:00 am
Photo courtesy of Peruvian Brothers
From a press release:
This Spring, the Peruvian Brothers, Giuseppe and Mario Lanzone, are bringing the authentic, unique tastes of “Comida Criolla” to the streets of Washington D.C. in a food truck owned and operated by the brothers themselves.
As a two time Olympic athlete in competitive rowing, Giuseppe Lanzone is the driving force on the business side to match his brother’s prowess in the kitchen. The brothers were born and raised off the coast of Lima, Peru, in a close-knit community of “La Punta” where family and the ocean reigned. The flavors that dominated their childhood are the tastes they crave the most, inspiring the Lanzone brothers to team up to represent the tastiest part of their Peruvian heritage.
The history behind the Peruvian Comida Criolla cuisine is as appealing and complex as the unique combinations of flavor. With roots in Andean-Spanish-Afro-Peruvian and Asian influences, Comida Criolla boasts powerful flavors that are sorely missing from the streets of D.C. Recipes passed down in the Lanzone family as well as Mario’s own original spins on traditional Peruvian favorites give the menu an authentic taste with a unique twist.
Peruvian Brothers will specialize in sandwiches and empanadas featuring chicharron (pork tenderloin), asado (beef), chicken and butifarra (pork loin) as well as vegetarian options all served with traditional Salsa Criolla, thinly sliced julienne onions marinated in lime juice with chopped Peruvian chilies. On the sweet side, Peruvian Brothers offers tasty rice pudding and traditional alfajores, which are soft, delicate cookies with dulce de leche filling. Mario’s famous homemade Lucuma and Maracuya ice cream highlights the authentic flavors of the subtropical fruit native to the Andean valleys of Peru. As budding entrepreneurs, Giuseppe and Mario are certainly no strangers to hard work. Mario is a full time bartender at Napoleon Bistro & Lounge and spends his summers captaining yachts in the Mediterranean.
Giuseppe competed in the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics for the United States rowing team and currently coaches rowing at Georgetown University. He looks to apply the same Olympic intensity and drive towards this new venture. In fact, the duo spent two full months hunting down the perfect bread that most accurately inspired their Peruvian taste buds which is now a custom “Peruvian Brothers” recipe on the menu at The French Bread factory in Sterling, Virginia. To sample their authentic Peruvian fare, follow the Peruvian Brothers truck via @PeruBrothers on Twitter and Facebook.
Yesterday we learned Rocklands BBQ would be expanding their Glover Park location. They’ve also some plans to add beer sales to their food truck when they are at to 1st and N Streets, SE while the Nats are in town. From a liquor license application:
“New Tavern, Food Truck. JBS is planning to serve barbeque and related food products from its food truck on private property at Ball Park Square (at the corner of 1st and N Streets, SE) on days of Washington Nationals home games. JBS is seeking an ABRA license to serve beer at the property on those days in conjunction with its food sales.”
Photo by PoPville flickr user jacquesofalltrades
From a Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington press release:
In one week the D.C. Council will convene a public roundtable in advance of an up or down vote on the fourth version of the proposed vending regulations. RAMW is in favor of the proposed regulations, which provide the necessary framework to make smart decisions about mobile vending in the District of Columbia.
Our hope for the passage of these regulations does not stem from a plan to thwart the competitive power of the new kids on the block. Indeed, it would be foolish to enter the foodservice industry without a desire to compete and differentiate. As representatives of Metropolitan Washington area dining establishments, we fully realize the high costs associated with starting a restaurant and we commend our friends in food trucks who have economized their operations and elevated the dining experience for those living and working in Washington, D.C.
Our goal then is not to diminish the importance of small businesses which contribute to the vibrancy of city life but to ensure that a more formal system of oversight is established and applied towards a segment of D.C.’s food service industry that has for years operated without having to give much thought to the public space it uses to generate private gains.
We firmly believe that the fourth version of the proposed mobile vending regulations provides the impetus for changes in city regulations which are long overdue and will finally bring the regulations into compliance with the law. The proposed vending regulations will not put food trucks out of business or bring an end to the D.C. food truck scene. They are not a plot concocted to stifle competition, kill jobs or deny consumer choice. Those are merely the contentions of people who apparently are not happy playing by any rules except for the ones they make for themselves. Reading just a portion of the proposed regulations will make this painfully clear.
Continues after the jump. (more…)
822 H St, NE (though actually located on 9th Street)
Back in June 2011 we first learned that the folks from the food truck Chupacabra would be opening a taco shop in the old auto detailing shop behind Stan’s Pants at 822 H St, NE. The entrance is actually on 9th St, NE and this past weekend the signage was getting painted.
On their facebook page they noted on April 19th:
“Chupacabra Latin Kitchen & Taqueria Brick and Mortar passed its health inspection today!”
Chupacabra will join the recently opened Sol Mexican Grill. Stay tuned for a taco taste off…
After the jump check out a bonus sweet city ride out front. (more…)
The following PoP-Ed. was written by Craig Barsi. Craig is Co-Owner of Sweetz Cheesecake and That Cheesecake Truck.
PoP-Ed. posts may be submitted via email to princeofpetworth(at)gmail please include PoP-Ed. in the subject line.
Why My Brick-and-Mortar Bakery Opened a Food Truck
It was 1988, and I was working as an accountant in the District and knew there had to be something more fulfilling than what I was doing. My love has always been food – especially sweets – so I knew this was the direction to go. My wife and I raided our savings accounts, and with the generosity of family, the Sweetz Cheesecake bakery was born.
Those first few years we spent peddling our cakes to Washington area restaurants and hotels. Our business grew, and in 1992 we opened our retail shop in Gaithersburg, Maryland. In 2000 we added a fundraising component to our business and have been steadily helping schools and nonprofits since.
When I started to look to expand or possibly move our bakery to the District, the high-priced rent, steep fees and bureaucracy gave me pause. Taking risks is part of any business, but I had to wonder if in this case it was worth it given that we were happily operating where we were.
However, the idea of a food truck captured my attention. Imagine being able to roam around a city and develop a clientele neighborhood by neighborhood. It wasn’t until 2011 when I brought my son-in-law on as a partner that I had the trusted manpower and energy that I needed! That Cheesecake Truck was born. Today “Big Blue” serves hundreds of cheesecakes across the District every week. That Cheesecake Truck also gives 10 percent of sales to charities we believe in. This is a sacrifice for us, as it would be for any food establishment, but we do it because this city has given me the ability to raise a family and build a business that one day I will pass along to them.
For my business, our food truck provided a way to test the market and build a brand and customer base, and it has convinced me that we could open a successful brick-and-mortar store in the District.
I’m one of a growing number of Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington members who started as brick-and-mortar businesses then opened a food truck. Like my colleagues who started as food trucks then grew into brick-and-mortar restaurants, I believe that regulations that stifle entrepreneurship and put at risk hundreds of jobs are not just bad for food trucks, they’re bad for all small businesses.
If Mayor Vincent Gray’s proposed regulations for food trucks are adopted, they would force us into a limited number of lottery-assigned spaces in the most popular areas, ban food trucks from operating within 500 feet of those spaces and prohibit downtown vending where there is less than 10 feet of unobstructed sidewalk.
Continues after the jump. (more…)