“I don’t think it’s easy to be a food truck in Sonoma County,” Hundley said.
The local resistance has lingered ever since the 2011 failure of the Munch Mondays project in the city of Santa Rosa. Under the program, food trucks received a special permit to park in a city parking lot south of the downtown library to bring more excitement to the dining scene.
But city officials scrapped it amid protests from downtown restaurateurs who argued that the trucks were taking away patrons.
Meanwhile, the food truck sector is flourishing nationally. The growth is not coming from the traditional worksite vehicles or taco trucks, but rather newer ones with global cuisines that can run the gamut from serving avocado sea salt ice cream to a Sriracha candy bar.
The industry is expected to generate $2.1 billion nationally in 2017, said Richard Myrick, editor-in-chief of the industry news website Mobile Cuisine.
The modern movement is generally attributed to Roy Choi, who created a cult following in 2008 in Los Angeles with his truck, Kogi, which stuffed Korean BBQ into Mexican tacos. The trend then swept through other large urban areas. The Grilled Cheese Truck out of Los Angeles became so successful that it was able to franchise out to other cities.
The growth resulted from a combination of several things that came out of the recession, Myrick said. First, there was a glut of chefs and cooks who were laid off during the economic slump. Second, many construction projects were canceled when banks were forced to tighten lending practices, leaving vacant spaces that could be rented cheaply. Finally, the advent of Facebook and Twitter, along with the smartphone, made it easy to publicize the location of roving food trucks on a daily or hourly basis.
“It was the perfect storm,” he said.
According to Mobile Cuisine, the average food truck in 2015 cost $85,000, though Myrick said some can go up to $300,000. There were 4,130 food trucks operating nationally, generating an average of $290,556 in annual revenues per truck, the site found.
As the industry grew, other suppliers saw opportunity. Indiana-based Utilimaster, known for making FedEx trucks, in 2013 announced it was going to start manufacturing food trucks. Square Inc. of San Francisco was also crucial in boosting revenue because its software payment program allowed customers to pay by credit or debit card.
While the number of food trucks has doubled over the past five years, according to Myrick, the growth in Sonoma County has been more stagnant. Last year, there were 185 licensed mobile food facilities, which includes food trucks as well as carts, according to the county health department. The number has changed little since 2011, when there were 176.
Some owners have found creative ways to generate work outside of festivals or markets.
For example, Red Horse Pizza’s trailer on weekends serves patrons who visit HenHouse Brewing Co.’s tasting room in Santa Rosa. The brewery only offers up free popcorn and many who drink want to break up the alcohol with food. Red Horse owner Kendra Stuffelbeam said she frequently has to explain to people that local laws make it unrealistic for her to show up in their neighborhood soon.
