First weekly food truck rodeo kicks off downtown

As the city discusses possible changes to its food truck ordinance and whether to incorporate food trucks into city events, others are moving forward on their own to keep the mobile restaurants downtown.

Starting Wednesday, Euphoria will launch Lunchtime Pile-Up, a regular food-truck rodeo downtown. The weekly event is a lead-up to the premier food, wine and music event's 10th year, organizers said, but it's also a chance to help grow food truck culture in Greenville.

"When it comes to it, yes, we, Euphoria, are an event and that's how we started," said Brianna Shaw, executive director of Euphoria, "but just as the culinary scene is evolving here, we want to evolve with it. We want to be out there more, so we don't feel like we're a one-time shot supporting the culinary scene."

For now, Lunchtime Pile-Up will take place each Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., but Shaw says that could change to twice a week if demand dictates. The location will be the corner lot at Falls and East Broad streets that's leased by Table 301 Restaurant Group, which fully supports the food truck efforts.

"The cities that are booming and that really have good food truck industries have a rally or a roundup where there are a lot of trucks together," said Carl Sobocinski, owner of Table 301. "So collaboration always seems to work best, and this is one of those things that continues to make Greenville cool."

Food trucks have been struggling to gain a foothold in the city ever since the city passed its ordinance governing the mobile food vendors in the summer of 2013. A year and a half after the ordinance passed designating certain areas where food trucks could be downtown and setting guidelines on proximity to restaurants, food truck owners and operators said the restrictions had hurt their business downtown.

In January, City Council members met with the owners and operators to explore ways to make the situation better.

Some of the insight gleaned from the meeting was that food trucks need leeway to operate later hours, that they need access to other locations downtown, and that a rodeo, where multiple trucks could gather at one time, would be beneficial and draw people to the city.

Last month, City Council was still discussing options, said Kai Nelson, director of the city's office of management and budget, which oversees food truck licensing. Some proposed changes were to allow food trucks to serve in the turnaround area at the Wyche Law Firm on Camperdown Way during lunch and dinner hours, versus only dinner and on weekends, and to allow for three trucks at a time.

Another proposal, Nelson said, was to extend serving hours to 2:30 p.m., to allow owners and operators more time to serve customers before having to clean and pack up their vehicles.

There had been little movement, though, on a city-backed rodeo.

But to Sobocinski, the time for a rodeo event is now.

"People's mindsets now are let's get out and go for a walk, and they'll go a little bit farther for lunch right now," Sobocinski said. "If you miss it in spring, then summer is fragmented and, sure, you can do some business, but right now you've got a tremendous amount of energy. It's like if you're going to open a restaurant, don't do it at the slowest time of the year, open it at the busiest time."

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So far, a number of food trucks have signed up for the Pile-Up. Automatic Taco, one of the newest kids on the block, will be at all four in May. It was an easy decision, says owner Nick Thomas.

"You can have a food truck and go around to the office parks in Greenville and Spartanburg and make money, but I think a really important part is being involved in the community and being a part of the culture of Greenville," Thomas said. "That progressive Greenville movement of food trucks and that progressive food scene, and being a part of that is vital."

Thomas has already created some anticipation with stories about his innovative tacos. He brings a chef's perspective to food truck food, paying careful attention to sourcing ingredients and to interplay between flavor and texture.

"It's not your average taco," Thomas assured.

Each Pile-Up event will include four trucks. The trucks pay $50 a week, or $150 for an entire month to participate. The funds will go directly to Euphoria's grants fund, which is funneled to the organization's non-profit partners.

"We heard the city was going to do a rodeo, and then we were like, well, we still want to do it," Shaw said of starting the food truck event. "What's the worst-case scenario? That there's two.

"And I think sometimes we can probably do things faster."

Lunchtime Pile Up will run through October.

Seating is available at the Soby's patio, at the Peace Center plaza and in front of City Hall.

The lineup for this Wednesday's Pile-Up is: Ellada Kouzina, The Chuck Truck, Sweetly Twisted, Automatic Taco and The Nomadik Few gourmet shaved ice stand.

To keep up with the weekly schedule, check out the Euphoria Facebook page.