Things I Have Learned About Food Trucks

I have learned so much about food trucks this summer.

1. There is not much room in a food truck. Only a few people can be in there cooking at a time.
   
   
2. It gets very hot inside a food truck. One evening not long ago, it was 102 degrees inside.
   
   
3. Sarah’s latex gloves literally fill up with sweat which spills out in the sink when she removes them to wash her hands and cool off.
   
   
4. If you are a little late putting the pasta on to boil, it will take forever to get ready as the line outside the window grows.
   
   
5. Leaning out the serving window is a back-killer.
   
   
6. I need to fill out the Intent to Serve forms for the Health Department as soon as we have dates for an event.
   
   
7. I need to remember to mail the Intent to Serve forms for the Health Department as soon as we have dates for an event.
   
   
8. If you swap out the propane tank in a pouring rain there is a good chance it will not start up afterwards.
   
   
9. If you swap out the propane tank in a pouring rain there is a good chance it will not start up the next day, either.
   
   
10. Pretty much anything you stack loosely on the shelf behind the driver’s seat will fall and hit Sarah on the head when she brakes.
    
    
11. Appliances, no matter how heavy they might be, will shift around in a moving vehicle.
    
    
12. It is possible for three hours to fly by when serving over 400 people.
    
    
13. Children are the sweetest customers!
    
    
14. It is important to stay organized and communicate during meal preparation and service.
    
    
15. People don’t realize it is a licensed commercial kitchen and sometimes just want to come in and join us as if we are at home. :)
    
    
16. Generators are loud.
    
    
17. You cannot open the oven when somebody is serving out the window.
    
    
18. It is difficult to bake cookies or pizza while serving out the window.
    
    
19. With enough elbow grease, the griddle can be kept relatively clean and shiny.
    
    
20. It is far easier to fill the water tanks with a hose than it is with gallon jugs.
    
    
21. The people we serve food to are very gracious.
    
    
22. Even though we didn’t initially want a full-size fridge in the truck, it is very handy to have.
    
    
23. It is hard to judge from week to week how many meals to plan for.
    
    
24. People really like iced coffee, even though I doubted they would. Sarah proved me wrong.
    
    
25. It is hard to find a vegetable everybody likes.
    
    
26. If the customer outside the window is very tiny, and about three years old, and there is no parent around, the possibility I will drop the plate trying to hand it to him/her increases drastically.
    
    
27. People generally accept a serving of everything the first time around. The second time around you find out what they liked.
    
    
28. If you don’t wear your WHMI apron, your t-shirts will get ruined when you cook.
    
    
29. I have never enjoyed grocery shopping. I still don’t.
    
    
30. One little boy can eat five or more hot dogs.
    
    
31. Lemonade is more popular than ice water.
    
    
32. Not everyone wants dessert, but most people do.
    
    
33. On days when everything goes wrong, you have to stop and laugh at yourselves.
    
    
34. If we bring the truck, people will come to eat.
    
    
35. If we bring the truck in the rain, people will still come to eat.
    
    
36. It can get confusing if we offer too many choices.
    
    
37. Even though storage space is limited, it is possible to lose things inside the truck.
    
    
38. Licensing inspections are nerve wracking.
    
    
39. In the midst of serving people, you have to remember to stir what needs to be stirred, or check what needs to be checked.
    
    
40. Every time there is a break in the line, there is something that can be done.
    
    
41. As soon as you step out of the truck to chat with someone, more people will come to eat.
    
    
42. You can never have enough oven mitts.
    
    
43. Two hours in the truck can feel like three hours at the gym.
    
    
44. I absolutely love The Torch, and working in the food truck, and can’t think of a better way to spend my time!