#gourmetgringos

[thebiteto]

Guys, the 'Food Truck' gallery has been updated! In case you missed the story, find it here, and make sure not to miss out on the 2013 AwesTRUCK People's Choice Award winner Gourmet Gringos!

[bumpercropfoodblog]

Gramma's lunch...Arepas wih beef, veg and guac! #localfirst #GourmetGringos #Yum

[thebiteto]

Street food break through

Gourmet Gringos, Toronto’s first gourmet latin food truck, getting ready for the lunch rush!

by Mark Cadiz

Come rain or shine, curbside street food is here to stay.

As the food truck door swings open, a coloured menu board sits by the service window as staff members dash around a retrofitted truck space.

It’s high noon and a small crowd gathers closer, looking for a bite to eat.

"We can’t change the weather but people come prepared. They know well in advance where we will be and people show up with umbrellas or whatever else they need to get their lunch," Terry Nicolaou said, co-founder of Latin food truck, Gourmet Gringos.

Although lagging behind cities like Vancouver and Calgary, Toronto’s street food scene is set to breakthrough. The recent surge in demand for street food has seen the number of trucks more than double over last year, from 12 in 2012 to 30 in 2013, according to Suresh Doss, Chair of the Ontario Food Truck Association.

"We never really had a driving street food scene in Toronto but since we are a multicultural city there is a lot of interest in street food and food trucks,” Doss said.

The Gourmet Gringos truck designed in sunny orange with a stout flamenco dancer plastered on its truck façade, is hard to miss, especially with its gourmet styled Latin food wafting out its windows.

Head chef, Jesus Arturo Gress, has explored the culinary scenes of Spain, France and other parts of Europe and is a big part of the business’ success. His mix of authentic flavours has helped catapult the business, leading them to win the 2013 AwesTRUCK People’s Choice Award--the Oscars status awards for food trucks held in Toronto this past September.

"My dad is Argentinian and my mom is Ecuadorian and no food truck offers what we offer, we are a totally distinct food truck," Krystian Catala said, also a co-founder.

Many would-be restaurateurs see the food truck approach as the first step towards opening up a restaurant. And it makes sense, allowing them to take their concept to the streets and introduce their food and brand to urbanites.

Allen Tan, who plans to open up a food truck named ME.N.U. by next summer, has been focusing on pop up events to introduce his Asian-fusion cuisine.

"I’m testing my product and my ideas with pop ups and that’s where the Toronto Underground Market and night markets come into play," Tan said.  "I can test my market, gain an audience and engage with them prior to starting my food truck."

Tan, 24, left his desk job and travelled to Southeast Asia to better understand Asian street food.  He spent four months there and plans to return in the near future with goals of bringing authentic Asian street food back to Toronto.

"I want to produce street food in the city, not only because of my early childhood travelling back with my parents, but I want to be part of the movement," Tan said.  "We want to have a say and get more food trucks onto Toronto streets."

Tan has created such buzz with his Asian rice balls, he has gathered nearly 4,500 fans on his Twitter account without yet launching his food truck. Now that he has developed his brand and attracted food enthusiasts, his truck, upon its launch, will already have an established clientele.

Even with the booming interest in street food, food truck restaurateurs still face stifling bylaws in Toronto limiting where they can offer their food. As the current bylaw stands, no new food trucks can offer their food on the curbsides of the downtown core, extending to Bathurst Street to the west, Eglinton Avenue to the north and the Don River to the east.

The setbacks have not stopped Gourmet Gringos, one of the original 12 trucks, from succeeding. They plan to open their first bricks and mortar restaurant on St. Clair and Bathurst with a second location planned in the next six months, all thanks to the success of their food truck business.

“Concept is one thing, but having good food is the most important thing,” Nicolaou said.

Tan and Nicolaou are both big supporters of street food culture and are playing a huge role in moving things forward.

"I definitely believe Toronto is eager for new street food. To be a world class city you need to have a wide array of foods on the street," Tan said.

One of Gourmet Gringo's staple menu items, the beer battered Mahi Mahi fish tacos.