I’m always a worrier before our events, and on Friday, with the overcast skies threatening rain all afternoon, I really wasn’t sure how things would turn out at our first What the Truck?! of the year.
But after it poured in the hours leading up to the start, the skies cleared, and we were blessed with sunny (and dry) skies. And thankfully, the crowds followed!
After a series of successful Truck Stops in McIntyre Park last year, we started considering the location for one of our larger festivals. Central, accessible, with lots of built in seating and grass, it turned out to be the perfect setting for a celebration of food trucks to usher in summer.
It was particularly gratifying for Mack and I to see so many young families in attendance. We always strive to make our events family-friendly, but it seemed even more children were in attendance this time around, dancing, playing with one another, and taking advantage of the open space.
It’s always great to see familiar faces at What the Truck?! – we really appreciate the support – but it’s also nice when we run into those who are attending the festival for the first time!
Allan (of Irvings Farm Fresh) at his first WTT
Mack and I were also excited to try the new food trucks for ourselves (it’s almost embarrassing to admit). Paul Lampa of The Food Fighter laughed when I told him I wouldn’t be sharing my chicken parmigiana sandwich – I knew why after I attempted to finish it on my own. I should have weighed the sandwich – it was beyond generous, and I was defeated by the layers of breaded chicken topped with cheese and a subtly sweet tomato sauce.
Paul of The Food Fighter
Mack chose the cheesy beef sandwich from The Local Omnivore, after learning that they brined the beef for twenty-one days before smoking it.
Mack with his cheesy beef
At the end of the night, most of the trucks had sold out of food. Thank you to those who attended for making the event a success – we hope you had a great time! To help us with the planning for future events, we would appreciate it if you could fill out this survey about your experience.
Events like this cannot happen without support from the community, and we were incredibly fortunate to work with great partners and sponsors. The Old Strathcona Business Association stepped up as a partner from the moment we approached them; a special shout out to Tineke for all of your work! The Strathcona Community League was a sponsor early on as well, and helped us spread the word in the neighbourhood. DJs Thomas Scott (Urban Monks), Rob Clarke and Polyesterday also donated their services – who didn’t want to dance along with them?
DJs Thomas Scott, Rob Clarke and Polyesterday
A final thank you goes to our wonderful volunteers, who were game for anything we threw at them that night! If you found the site spotless, you know who to thank!
We are in the process of planning our events for the rest of the year, but you can expect two more What the Truck?! events this season, and at least one Truck Stop in the coming months. Check back on What the Truck?! for details!
You can see more photos from the event here.
Only Here for the Food 
Kudos for the two of you to take this one. Your projects are such fun and add vibrancy to the city that is important… and the people that come together, whether they know one another or not, seem to chat and enjoy the event like they are at a house party… which is really great!
🙂
V
Thanks, Val. We are really fortunate that people do come out for these events, rain or shine :).