By MOLLY WALLACE
As one walks into the Winter Park Food Truck Stop’s lunch crew, senses go crazy. Fifteen trucks are lined up and ready to serve. Although the lunch crowd is small, the sights and smells are immense and excite one’s senses.
It’s wise to get one’s fix earlier in the day because the 5 p.m. crowd brings an incredible number of taste-crazed foodies. The food truck phenomenon has spurred new and creative ideas for on–the-go food, and shows like The Great Food Truck Race on Food Network have landed food trucks in a key position for a 2011-2012 fad.
“It’s a neat thing for people to get together with friends, and it isn’t too costly,” Viveca Arerstedt, owner of SwedeDISH food truck, said.
SwedeDISH allows one to head, mouth-first, into the world of food trucks. Arerstedt and her husband run this Swedish inspired truck. They provide the masses with homemade, authentic Swedish dishes like meatballs and mashed potatoes, topped with a tasty gravy ($7.50).
“In my case, it’s very hard [to own a food truck] because everything I make is from scratch. I don’t want any shortcuts,” Arerstedt said.
The food truck owners pride themselves on ‘from scratch’ food, which could contribute to why the fad has become so popular. Friendly faces, who are making food in front of a crowd tends to be more exciting than sitting in a restaurant, waiting to be served food made by an unknown face.
“Higher quality food is found on site at the food trucks,” Tom Waggestad, owner of Gator Country BBQ, said.
Thursday nights are when people gather at the Winter Park Food Truck Stop on Orlando Avenue. With live music, a bustling crowd of foodies start their mission to find the newest, tastiest creations. The excitement is being able to walk around, share the different styles of food with friends or family and be a part of a new-aged food culture.
“If you go with your friends you can all sit around in your cars in the parking lot and eat and hang out. It’s really friendly and that sets it apart from a building,” junior Timothy Hamilton said.
Another aspect about food truck events is their adaptability. On one side of the pod is Gator Country BBQ, serving gator as burgers or just plain, with prices ranging from $7 – $9. On another side is The Winter Park Fish Company, serving fresh and fried seafood. And in the middle you can find Kona Dog, creating a new spin on the art of hotdog eating. Scattered chairs, tables, couches and benches allow guests to feel like they are at a family cookout.
With the variety of food, comes the variety of meal choices. At the Winter Park Food Truck Stop, there is a plethora of dinner items as well as dessert items. Lisa Mato, owner of The Crepe Company food truck, describes events like these as a food truck tapas party, a place where people share smaller portions of food amongst each other.
For the sweet-fiends, Fork In The Road offers a walnut ice cream sundae for $5, and the Crepe Company offers s’mores crepes, strawberries and cream cheese crepes, as well as candy apple crepes. The crepes, made in plain view by Mato, are big in their portion size and worth the $5. No matter what is sold, there has to be a love for food by both customers and food truck owners.
“This is my restaurant; this is where my favorite food is made,” Mato said.
Hamilton suggests one should know that every truck offers a different take on the classics, like La Empanada does by stuffing empanada dough with known food such as barbeque chicken. The Food Truck pod at Winter Park held true to that, bringing 15 different aromas and menus to the scene for a massive group of grub-seekers.
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