Each Monday I recap food truck news as it relates to the Triangle area (Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill). Bringing news that impacts food truck owners, fans, or those curious.
Knightdale Rodeo
It was a cold Saturday, however, food truck fans came out for Knightdale’s first 2015 food truck rodeo. In attendance were We Bea Grillin’, Porchettta, 101 Catering, CJ’s Funnel Cakes, Iced Cupcakes, Chick-N-Que, and Chirba Chirba. If you missed the last one, Knightdale will have another one in May.
The Wandering Sheppard’s Food Truck Listing
One item that I have been asked for was a list of all the trucks within the area. Over the weekend, I gave the list a soft opening. The list is called “The Fleet”, which shows all the trucks in the area. If you want to see the list at any time, you can find the link on the home page or I made an easy link. I have also made my Food Truck list in Raleigh on Twitter public. If you want your truck listed, complete the contact form on the Fleet page.
KocinA adds another chef to the food truck
Chef Julian Perez from Colombia joins the KocinA team. Chef Julian will focus on the truck, while Chef JP (owner) will focus on catering and other segments.
The Big Easy’s Fat Tuesday on Fayetteville Street
No, Raleigh did not step into a Hot Tub Time Machine. As you may recall the bad weather we received last week hit around late Monday and the roads were not well on Tuesday. In advance of the weather, The Big Easy moved their event to Saturday, February 28th. From Noon to 1o pm, Fayetteville Street will have lots of activities, which includes food trucks. Food trucks lined up are AmigoSan, Baguettaboutit, Bam Pow Cow, CockADoodleMoo, Hibachi Xpress, Iced Cupcakes and Stuft. Inside and outside The Big Easy will have music starting at 5pm. Outside there will also be Streetside Entertainment with Cirque de Vol. Check updates and details at @BigEasyNC, Facebook, and the Event Page.
Raleigh Brewing celebrates two years
On March 7th, Raleigh Brewing will celebrate two years with music and food trucks. Both Dump Pho King Truck and Philly’s Cheesesteaks will be there from 2 to 8pm and Iced Cupcakes will have complimentary cupcakes from 4pm-8pm.
In addition to three special beers and three food trucks, there will also be live music
Music Line- Up is as follows:
*2pm – 4pm: The Hey Brothers
*5pm – 7pm: Cosmic Superheroes
*8pm – 10pm: Gary Mitchell: Music with a Message
Lastly, Raleigh Brewing is giving away a Kegerator with $1 raffle tickets. 100% of the ticket sales will go to the The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Tickets will stop at the close of business on March 7th and the winner will be announced on Monday, March 9th.
Big John’s getting an “Extreme Makeover”
I don’t know how I missed this, but many trucks have hibernated from the cold. One was Big John’s, which I discovered has sold their trailer and in the midst of an upgrade and building their new wheels. Last update said March 8th as their deadline, which I assume means we should see the new look at the next Durham Central Park rodeo!
Special Food Truck Dinners
Food trucks and breweries are having special dinners at their taprooms. Here are a few going on now:
Olio and Aceto (Chapel Hill Cafe location) & Wine: February 26th. See the blog’s post.
Bull City Street Food & Bull City Ciderworks: March 11th at 7pm (5 courses for $35)
●Course 1 – Taco with Chicken Braised in Rhiz Up! Cider with Red Quinoa, Apple Slaw, Pickled Onions and Cilantro Cream
●Course 2 – Wild Rice Stuffed Pork Loin with a Cardinal Cin Cider Infused Apple Chutney
●Course 3 – Spruce Bringsteen Cider Stir Fry with Black Tiger Prawn and Asian Vegetables
●Course 4 – Hearty Beef Tenderloin Stew with Root Vegetables and a Steep South Cider Gravy over a Bed of Garlic Mashed Potatoes
●Course 5 – Sweet Carolina Cider Glazed Bananas with Candied Pecans
Reservations can be made at the Cider Bar at Bull City Ciderworks.
Manna & Double Barley: April 8th
Food Trucks and Sweet Potatoes
This February is North Carolina Sweet Potato month. In celebration, North Carolina Sweet Potato Commission created the “Signature Sweets” promotion. Chefs and food artisans have put together creations highlighting the state’s famous root vegetable.
There are over 50 restaurants including the following food trucks:
AmigoSan: Sweet and Spicy Tater Tots
Bam Pow Chow: Sweet potato fries w/Kobiyaki sauce, spicy mayo, black sesame seeds
Sweet potato fries w/Kobiyaki sauce, spicy mayo, black sesame seeds @BamPowChow @loneriderbeer http://t.co/wPWCL0yVER—
(@BamPowChow) January 17, 2015
CockADoodleMoo: Ginger Thai Sweet Potato Bisque. Check Gadaboutfood’s post about the recipe (you may recognize her from a recent Chew episode).
Iced Cupcakes: Sweet Potato Pecan Praline Cupcake
Kocina: A Sweet Potato Empanada
Pie Pushers: Sweet Potatoes on pizzas.
Sarge’s Chef: Sweet Potato Black Bean Burger
Valentino’s: Potato Chic~Pig Hero, Tender grilled chicken & bacon topped with a reduction sauce spiced NC Sweet Potatoes and Fullsteam Beer. Steve hinted more items like gnocchi and zeppoles.
Rabbit Farm Crowd Funding Project
Fatty Owl Farm (@ready4rabbit) in Pittsboro is looking to raise funds to add a processing center on their farm. They have asked if food trucks might be interested in working with them on a reward. I also noticed they have a reward geared toward restaurants. If want to see more on the project, check out their barnraiser page.
Pittsboro announces first rodeo for 2015
Excited to see that Pittsboro will start up with a rodeo on March 21st and 3rd Saturdays following. These rodeos are located next to the Pittsboro Roadhouse with a concert usually inside the Roadhouse. They are setting up a lighted sign, which will allow for food trucks to have power and not depend on generators. The first line-up has not been set, so trucks interested should contact the Pittsboro Roadhouse.
Trucks Giving Back
I hope you can recall last year when Gussy’s organized a rodeo that was just for the Durham Rescue Mission. The event was participated by Gussy’s, Stuft, Chick-N-Que, and Not Just Icing, where they provided food to those at the Rescue Mission for free. Gus wants to do the event again expanding it to more trucks and Rescue Mission locations. If your food truck is interested, contact Gus at 919-656-7096 or Direct/Private Message @GreekGussys. The event was covered by many media outlets, including a live shot by Anthony Wilson from ABC 11.
Trucks Opening Locations
Coming Soon
Sol Tacos (as a Sol Tapas concept) – estimated early 2015, Downtown Raleigh. Hints have been out about an April 1st opening.
Deli-icious: Location is in Clayton with a 2015 date expected.
Captain Ponchos: location in Southern Village, Chapel Hill. The date has been pushed back from originally posted. However, based on the photos, things are progressing well. Stay posted here.
And KoKyu BBQ has sent another update to Kickstarter backers and Facebook followers about a KoKyu Na’mean Sandwich Shop as well as further progress on a commissary and restaurant. The details are still influx right now. I’ll update as we get more information.
Big Events Coming
Durham Central Park 2015 Schedule released
January 25th (what a great day that was)
March 8th
June 21st
September 6th
November 1st
If interested, the Durham Central Park recognized Ben Weber, Becky Hacker (Pie Pushers) and Brian Bottger (Only Burger) as the rodeo organizers.
Wake Forest Rodeo Days announced
March 29th
May 17th
July 12th
November 8th
Location is 419 S Brooks Street in Wake Forest at the Over The Falls Shopping Center. Rodeo will go on from 12 to 4pm.
Brewgaloo
This event has been around, but this year was my first time. For beer (and spirits as local TOPO Distillery was here this year) and food truck fans, this is a prime event. Two stages on both ends of Fayetteville Street with beer and food trucks filling the asphalt in between. The date set is April 25, 2015 and is from 2-10pm. I know a bit early, but you might want to circle it and tell your family this is a great weekend to visit.
Downtown Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo 2015
May 3rd
June 14th
August 9th (Evening Rodeo)
October 11th
Beericana presented by 919 Beer
In 2014, the Triangle was introduced to an awesome event with local beer, food trucks, and music. Thankfully we will see this again September 12th, 2015. Mark your calendars and stay tuned for details on the blog.
Outside the Triangle
The inaugural Capital City Food Truck Convention organized by the DMV Food Truck Association (DC-Maryland-Virgina) is taking place Sunday, April 19th. This one day event will gather current and new food truck owners, as well as, other people within the industry. Currently, they are doing early bird registration until February 28th. For more details on the location, registering and agenda, see the association’s website.
World’s Largest Food Truck Festival III
Just outside of Tampa, Generation Food Truck is organizing another large food truck festival. You can follow them @100truckrally or find details at the Facebook Page. The event is March 28th and 29th with a fee $250 for trucks interested. The event is free for those who attend, but $6 parking.
ROAM is coming to Orlando, Florida
Hopefully you caught last week’s special post on the 2014 event.
Circle your calendars now for ROAM 2015 in Orlando. This is the only food truck industry conference that brings owners and industry-specific people together. I’ll have a special post just on my experience here in San Antonio. But in short, if you are someone in the food truck business, I think you need to be here. The dates are November 15 and 16th, which is Sunday and Monday. Hopefully, those are admin days and only 8 1/2 hours (by car) between the Triangle and Orlando. I hope we can exponentially expand our representation for this one.
Food Trucks and Restaurants to support (RED) in June 2015
I came back from the ROAM Conference early November was about the (RED) organization. The (RED) Organization fights AIDS in Africa where 2/3 of those with AIDS are located. In 2014, the organization had events around the food and beverage industry. However, they want to make it bigger and get everyone involved. It would be a nice scene to see food trucks featuring a (RED) menu next June!
For more details on the event, check out details at (RED)‘s website dedicated to the food and beverage industry.
Is your food truck news here? This post focuses on Triangle food trucks every week. If you got news, let the blog know using the form below.
The Wandering Sheppard 