By David Laprad
Just like Guy Fieri has never met a Guido Burger he didn’t like, I’ve never met a food truck that didn’t put a mouthwatering grin on my face. And I’ve tried my share of mobile eateries in Chattanooga.
There’s just something about the passion a solo entrepreneur pours into a particular style of food that makes it worth chasing down. From crazy good burgers to gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches and barbecue that melts in your mouth and then melts your mouth, the residents of the Scenic City are lucky to have a fleet of trucks hauling culinary goodness through their streets.
This column has featured several food trucks, generally one at a time. While there are places where you can hit more than one truck, such as the Chattanooga Market, mobile chefs are often lone horsemen, hitting the pavement on their own and setting up at diverse businesses and events, making it hard to track your favorites.
Fortunately, the days of pursuing your favorite portable diner across town (I’m not the only one who does this, right?) could be over, thanks to a new concept that has emerged downtown during the chilly months of winter.
Dubbed “Food Truck Alley,” the idea is simple: On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., as many as six food trucks set up shop along the thin strip of commercial real estate behind Cupcake Kitchen. You know the place – it’s where Chattanooga Ducks parked their boat for years.
It’s a good spot for the venture. Located between Broad and Market Streets, Food Truck Alley is accessible to those who are hoofing it to lunch or dinner, while the parking spaces located on the same property makes it easy to drive-and-dine (and ups the cost of your meal by a few dollars).
What I don’t understand is the timing. If you’ve ever seen the clip of Reese Witherspoon expressing her disbelief over a woman bringing a baby to a bar in the movie “Sweet Home Alabama,” then you can imagine my reaction when I read that Food Truck Alley opened Jan. 30.
“You opened a food truck court. In the dead of winter. During a pandemic.”
I tried to connect with the owner and sole employee of Food Truck Alley, Karol Brigham, but she didn’t have an opportunity to chat before me writing this piece, so the mystery of her timing will remain unsolved.
What I can tell you is that Food Truck Alley presents an opportunity to try myriad fantastic-looking fare.
If you’re reading this on your computer or mobile device, take a moment to scroll through the truck schedule, conveniently located at the top of www.chattalley.com.
As I write this on a Tuesday, Friday is looking good with Mac’s Subs and Fries (“Flavor you can trust,” the page states), Street Quesadilla (“Best Mexican tacos on the street,” they claim) and Fud Vybez, which offers a fusion of Southern cooking and Caribbean cuisine.
Saturday is scheduled to bring in Kenny’s Smokehouse, California Smothered Burrito, and Cart & Seoule, which wraps traditional Korean flavors in a familiar shell.
Sno Top Shaved Ice & Coffee also will be there. Outside. In the dead of winter.
So, whether you’re into comfort food, authentic Mexican fare or more adventurous fodder, Food Truck Alley sets the stage for an exciting variety of choices.
Have you ever been trapped in a never-ending conversational loop about where to eat? (“What do you want to eat?” “I don’t know. What do you want to eat?”) Choosing Food Truck Alley can end these dreaded exchanges before you end up grabbing a processed McLunch just to escape.
On the day my wife and I journeyed from Ringgold to Food Truck Alley (other people drive that far to eat out of a food truck, right?), there were only two vendors present: SlingEm’s and Polita’s Mexican Food.
That was all we needed.
SlingEm’s serves a variety of fresh grilled burgers, a hot dog on sourdough and a grilled cheese sandwich called the Jack Murphy, which comes with a combination of cheddar, Havarti and provolone melted between two slices of potato bread.
In retrospect, I should have tried the Jack Murphy, but I figured SlingEm’s bread and butter is burgers, so that’s what I ordered. And it did not disappoint.
If SlingEm’s burgers aren’t the juiciest, freshest tasting burgers in town, they have to be close. I also liked the buttery bun, which was toasted on the edges, and the crisp, flavorful toppings. I’d get another one.
I’d also go back for Polita’s, which plastered that goofy mouthwatering grin across my face.
As I scanned the chalkboard menu outside Polita’s small but spic-and-span trailer, I asked Polita’s daughter, who was standing outside taking orders, to describe “barbacoa.” Instead, Polita thrust a sample of the oh-so-tender meat through her window.
It was love at first bite, so of course I ordered a barbacoa taco. Polita makes all of her own food, including the tortillas, and you can taste the passion I mentioned earlier in each bite.
My wife, a native New Yorker who turns up her nose at most of the food here, didn’t speak to me until she had devoured her Big Burrito, which came with steak, rice and beans.
Rendering my wife speechless during a meal is the equivalent of a five-star review on Yelp. When she was done, she wiped her mouth and said, “That tasted real.”
Although foot traffic was light, a few folks were cuddled up to the industrial heaters as they waited for their food.
No one stayed to eat at the bar-style tables anchored to the fence between the trucks and the parking area, but I imagine hungry patrons will make good use of these seats in the warmer months to come.
At least I hope they do, because I’d like Food Truck Alley to become a fixture in downtown Chattanooga. As tourist attractions reopen and workers return to their offices (if that happens on a significant scale), then perhaps we’ll see the kinds of lines that will keep it in business.
One thing that might help is consistent rules for safe eating. During my visit, Polita’s appeared to be aware of present concerns: Everyone was masked, Polita was wearing gloves, the chalkboard menu allowed for less contact, hand sanitizer was available and condiments were available in single-serving cups instead of bottles (as you can see in the photo).
None of this was the case at SlingEm’s, as my wife pointed out. (The truck, did, however, earn a 99 on its latest health inspection.)
Still, Food Truck Alley offers choices, so if you’re being careful, check with the vendors ahead of time to see which safety measures they use. Most can be contacted through Facebook.
That one niggle aside, Food Truck Alley is an inspired concept I hope draws a lot of business. Chattanooga has been needing a dedicated space for food trucks, and I’m thrilled someone finally made it happen.