Four years after mobile eateries took the Capital Region by storm, the industry is in flux. As Business Report details in a feature from the current issue, by 2012, food trucks were arguably the hottest culinary trend in Baton Rouge, with a robust fleet of about 16 serving portable street food.
Enthusiastic patrons in the Capital City monitored their favorite trucks’ whereabouts on Facebook and Twitter, often standing in long lines in the heat, and sometimes rain. Three of the first operators—Taco de Paco, Curbside Burgers and Go Ya Ya’s—earned spots on the Cooking Channel program Eat Street, and 225 magazine introduced a food truck category in its annual “Best of 225″ issue.
Local food trucks were robust enough to trigger a debate about where mobile eateries should be allowed to set up, and a proposed ordinance limiting proximity to permanent restaurants was floated before the East Baton Rouge Metro Council. It was defeated with help from public pressure in April 2012—more evidence that Baton Rouge’s food truck culture seemed to be on the fast track.
Today, however, the number of trucks hasn’t grown appreciably in the Capital City, and many of the original operators have gotten out of the business altogether. There are fewer participants in the weekly Wednesday Wround-Up, a roving gathering established during the trucks’ heyday. Several owners have transitioned to permanent brick-and-mortar locations. Some current operators believe this subsector of the food industry is simply getting calibrated. Others are convinced impediments in Baton Rouge make it difficult to draw a new crop of food truck entrepreneurs. Read the full feature. Send your comments to editors@businessreport.com.
