I guess bouncers are on to something when they force hopeful, bleary eyed patrons into line-ups outside of bars.
If so many people are willing to wait, then the thought of ‘it must be good’ creeps into your psyche.
Yesterday’s Food Truck Eats event had a similar effect with a greater reward. Instead of aggressively annoying music and expensive cocktails, at the end of the line delicious street eats awaited.
I watched many passers-by curiously stare at what was happening and eventually become part of the scene. After a quick study of the menus they themselves queued up for what they thought looked good. There was a genuine buzz amongst the crowd of students.
The smell of braised meat was wafting through the air while many students smiled with the anticipation of sinking their teeth into food – the quality of which they are not used to seeing offered on their campus.
With regular stationary ‘fry trucks’ in plain sight, the mobile food trucks offering gourmet twists on street food put on a display of overwhelming customer dominance, proving the high food IQ amongst the UofT student population.
The trucks were busy right from the opening bell at 11:00 a.m. The crowds hit a fever pitch on each hour when classes were changing over with students scurrying across campus bobbing and weaving around each other like bees.
The ever popular Cupcake Diner sold out by 1:00 p.m. leaving some in dismay over an unsatisfied sweet tooth fix.
With lines of hungry food enthusiast wrapping around the corner at all times, El Gastronomo Vagabundo was sold out by 2:00 p.m. With help from their team, owners Tamara Jensen and Adam Hynam-Smith worked at a furious pace dishing out 215 orders, some of which were for 8+ items, in 190 minutes.
Caplansky’s and the Toasted Tangerine followed closely behind firing through all of their supply for the day soon after.
“We had a super fun day and hope to be invited back. The student community turned out by the hundreds and their patience and understanding of the long lines was amazing! I think today was another giant step forward for the food truck business”, said Alyssa Tangerine, owner of the truck with the same name.
All trucks combined it was estimated that over 1,100 patrons dined on unique offerings over about a three hour span.
There were some complaints about the lines, but although frustrating, it illustrated the need and demand for more trucks throughout the City.
On a cold January day some waited for over an hour. Many claimed it was worth it but some missed out on the food entirely, which added some sting to the frosty day.
I myself, having previously tried a lot of the food at other events, decided to lay back and take in the event instead of braving the lines.
Although with some lucky timing I was able to swoop in and grab the last order of El Gastronomo’s ‘Kim Jong Illin’ wings served with Kimchi. They were sticky, sweet and brought the heat, which warmed me up for the walk home and offered a good close to a fun day.
The event was put together by Food Truck Eats organizer Suresh Doss and Sarah Kahn from UofT Food Services. The pedestrian only zone on Wilcocks St., in the heart of the campus, provided the perfect setting to house the food trucks.
The Facebook following was massive for an event of this scale, with over 600 people confirming their attendance. Foot traffic, word of mouth and twitter buzz also helped the event gain traction and become a great success with the #foodtruckeats hash tag trending in Toronto for few hours.
Fellow food blogger Joel Solish had this to say after reflecting on the event, “It is nice to see the city, and especially the younger generation, embracing street food culture in Toronto. Now, if only the City would open their eyes to the fact that we are well behind other cities in North America and relax the rules. Toronto wants food trucks, this is fact.”
Suresh and Sarah co-ordinated a great event, which fingers crossed, could happen more frequently if the powers that be are on board. Hopefully with more trucks, keeping the lines at bay and getting everyone fed quickly.
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About the Author: Mark Macdonald is the Founder of Toronto Food Trucks. He is a Toronto freelance web designer and a street food movement supporter. Get more from Mark on Twitter and Google +.
