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westerngazette.ca TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2015 • WESTERN UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER • VOLUME 109 ISSUE 23 rip winston since 1906
The liberation of food trucks
The city of London has not always been receptive to the idea of food trucks. But since launching on eight-truck pilot project this year, Londoners can expect to see a booming food truck industry in the future.
ELLIS KOIFMAN GAZETTE STAFF @GAZETTECULTURE Edward Manuel spent many years working at a car dealership, selling cars to residents of London. But when the company he was working for went under five years ago, he began searching for a new career. His son, Ziad, was just finishing school at Fanshawe College for interior design and would soon be looking for work as well. With little idea of what to do with his future, Edward and his son decided to invest in a family-run food truck. “It was a way to get my dad working again because he’s always been the kind of guy to keep moving,” Ziad says. The two of them scouted out several locations and built their stationary food truck from the ground up. With his knowledge of interior design, Ziad helped design the truck. Edward and his wife, Maha, often accompanied by their son, now run Eddie’s Fresh Grill on Queens Ave. “My dad has a passion for food,” Ziad says. “My parents are unbelievable cooks. For them, when it comes to food, it’s a no-brainer.” KYLE PORTER GAZETTE
The passion for food that led to the opening of Eddie’s Fresh Grill was only recently made possible, as London city council has had a strong opposition allowing food trucks in past years. Jesse Helmer, Ward 4 city councillor for London, says previous city councils have been worried that food trucks would detract from local restaurants. As a result, they remained banned for the most part until fairly recently. “It took a long time for [city council] to do anything in London,” Helmer says. The reluctance towards food trucks took a turn when city council decided to examine the issue following the 2014 municipal election. “I’ve been a supporter of food trucks for a long time and in fact organized a petition to get support that got over 1,000 signatures,” Helmer says. “Everyone was pretty into changing the regulatory regime to allow for food trucks and that was just a matter of what exactly we were going to do.” On Feb. 24, following a 15-0 unanimous vote, the City of London agreed to lift the outright ban on food trucks. The win for food truck owners allowed them to begin
operating on certain streets as part of a pilot program. The program has only made eight licenses available so far, which require paying a fee and submitting an operation plan. Drivers are also required to keep a logbook, operate within the limited number of permitted parking areas and keep minimum distance separation from restaurants, residences, schools and special events. There are plans for city council to reconvene later this year to decide on improvements and changes in response to feedback from the food truck owners and the London community. Today, London’s food truck owners have been inspired by the success that other big cities have had with the industry as a whole. It is a city that is starting to grasp the exciting and unique food offered by this food service. Food trucks are a stark contrast from the typical brick and mortar restaurants that seat dozens of people every day for meals, and are a trendy way to enjoy good food at low costs with all the convenience of the restaurant coming to you. SEE FOOD TRUCKS PAGE 7