Raleigh has emerged as one of the best cities in the country for food trucks, according to a report published by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation.
The study evaluated 20 cities’ regulatory requirements, restrictions and associated financial obligations that come with opening and operating a food truck. It also calls for greater awareness of the regulatory speed bumps food trucks must cross to open up for business. Portland, Ore., Denver, Colo. and Orlando, Fla. topped the list while Boston placed last and Raleigh ranked 11th overall.
Becky Cascio, who co-owns the Durham-based food truck Pie Pushers with her husband Mike Hacker, said the two opened their truck seven years ago when food trucks weren’t as widely known or quickly accepted by the community.
“At the time, there weren’t as many food trucks,” she said. “It was something that just wasn’t around yet in Durham or in the Triangle.”
Carrboro and Durham were initially a lot more welcoming to the food truck culture and did not have that many barriers to overcome when starting a food truck, Hacker said. As time went on and more trucks emerged, Raleigh’s policies regarding food trucks began to loosen and allowed for easier entry into the market.
“Raleigh and Chapel Hill weren’t as open to us, but their rules started to change and adjust with the growing industry,” she said. “They have put things in place where there’s a process now — you can go online; you can see how much it costs; this is what you have to do.”
Madison Mundy, program director at the RDU Mobile Food Association, said the organization’s purpose is to promote safety, knowledge and quality within the Raleigh-Durham food truck community.
“A lot of people would probably assume that trucks are in competition with each other, and explicitly we are,” she said. “But at the same time, this community is a really awesome space for food trucks to share things with each other. If somebody has a problem and can’t make a service, they’ll post it in the group and somebody will go and cover it. Everybody helps each other out.”
Mundy said food trucks often get a bad reputation for not showing up to events due to uncontrollable factors like the weather or mechanical problems with the truck.
