BY BRITTANY ANDERSON
In their own words
Stay tuned
Anderson Mill Food Truck Court in Northwest Austin is expected to open by this summer, owner Ramin Zavareh said. Four trucks have already signed on, with some still in the permitting process. When it comes to streamlining this process, a bill led during the 89th Texas Legislature could create some consistency for Texas food establishment regulations, Gessner said. Each city or county sets its own level of regulations on top of state regulations, she said. As such, establishments operating in multiple locations could face di erent sound ordinances, public health regulations, inspection schedules and fees in each location. Senate Bill 1008 seeks to address these issues by setting various provisions for local permitting and fees, which Gessner said could “help level the playing eld,” especially for mobile food vendors who travel around.
City of Austin o cials estimate that more than 80% of mobile food vendors in Austin are operated by people of color. That diversity is re ected in Northwest Austin’s food truck parks, where visitors can nd a variety of international cuisines—including Mr. Pimento, a Jamaican-inspired food trailer that opened in 2022. “One of the reasons I started this is because I noticed that here in Austin in general, there wasn’t a litany of Caribbean, particularly Jamaican, cuisine,” owner Clay Spence said. “... One of the exciting things about Austin is it’s like a brand new canvas by all the people moving in.” Mediterranean food trailer Breeze & Bites is the rst for Ali Berkay, who runs it with childhood friend Huseyin Aktas after the two moved to the United States about two years ago. Despite “higher than expected” competition that has come along with operating in a food truck court, Berkay said the spot is his “dream location.” “The reactions are really great, and the
Mr. Pimento moved from its East Austin spot to the new Pink Flamingo Food Court earlier this year.
“You need competition to give a good picture of whether this is a good spot or not. So the fact that we have all of this—that’s one of the reasons why I’m excited to be here. … The demographic is outstanding.” CLAY SPENCE, MR. PIMENTO OWNER
community is helping us so much,” Berkay said. “We have regular customers who are coming by, so it’s motivating to us.”
Senate Bill 1008
January • Bill iled March • Bill reviewed by Senate Business and Commerce Committee April • Bill passed in Senate May • Bill passed in House June • Gov. Greg Abbott could sign bill into law SB 1008 targets mobile food vendor permitting to streamline the process.
Diving in deeper
a 15%-30% commission to utilize its services. Despite the nancial impact this can have on inde- pendent restaurants and food trucks, it becomes the cost of doing business, Robinson said. “Do you want 0% of zero sales, or do you want 70% of however [many] sales there are?” Robinson said. “The answer is—even though it’s not my full margin—I can’t say no, because the business is not in a situation to say no to sales. And that’s the conundrum that most restaurants are in.”
Opting to open a food truck or trailer may yield less startup costs or overhead expenses, but Robinson said there’s a “misconception that it’s going to be simpler and easier.” The restaurant landscape has changed sig- ni cantly since the coronavirus pandemic as consumer behavior heavily shifted to takeout through third-party food delivery platforms such as DoorDash, he said. These platforms typically charge businesses
• Bill could take effect Sept. 1 September
SOURCE: TEXAS LEGISLATURE ONLINE COMMUNITY IMPACT
15
NORTHWEST AUSTIN EDITION
Powered by FlippingBook