Food Trucks In The Northland
DULUTH, Minn. — Northland temperatures are cooling as we ease into fall, but the food truck business is hotter than ever.
And Kelsey Auran would know, she has worked for The Rambler for six years and says it was always in owner Jonathan Reznick’s heart to own a food truck. The Rambler was one of the first food truck businesses in Duluth. Reznick was instrumental in working with Mayor Don Ness and the City Council to help develop initial licensing and permitting guidelines.
“With his wanting to start up the business obviously there being no food trucks or trailers around. So, there was no legislation, no rules or regulations so it kind of had to start with square one,” said Auran. “He was in those meetings figuring out what works best for both food trucks and trailers as well as brick and mortars because we don’t want to be too close to them and take business away from them, so it is just working hand in hand with the community to see what works best for the most amount of people.”
Food trucks can provide a gateway for other food related businesses.
Reznick chose to move into the catering side of the industry to found Mid-Coast Catering. They provide food for special events like weddings, graduations and anniversaries and have expanded to include an event venue.
According to IBISWorld, an international research company, the Food Truck market is poised for significant growth. Here in the Northland, Tony Bronson, President of the Duluth Local Restaurant Association says there are fewer barriers to starting a Food Truck business.
“Food Trucks are convenient. Food trucks are a way to kind of get a number of different food styles into a small area and so that’s why you see them outside of breweries and special events,” said Bronson.
Eduardo Sandoval Luna believes partnering with breweries provided the recognition needed to build the customer base for his Food Truck, Oasis Del Norte. He grew up in Northern Mexico watching and later helping his mom prepare dishes for the family.
“I wanted to bring my Latino/Mexican culture to the Northland. I had been in the restaurant business with my mom in Mexico and just to bring the culture through the food. I was looking to explore new ways to bring the Latino Mexican culture in at this point. Sharing who we are as a culture and that way we can understand each another and we can learn from each other to accept each other more,” said Sandoval Luna.
His next move was opening a brick-and-mortar restaurant which opened last week.
As we inch toward winter, most food trucks will shut down or significantly reduce their operations. Both food truck owners in this story look forward to even more success and food diversity in 2024.
