By Garrett Ellison | Michigan Live
GRAND RAPIDS, MI — A West Michigan food truck owner is doubling down on mobile eats.
Paul Lee, owner of The Winchester bar on Wealthy Street SE, recently bought a 1956 Chevy Kurb-Side delivery truck and is having it retrofitted as a companion to his What The Truck food truck.
The new truck, a 3-speed manual transmission, is smaller, about 14-foot long versus the 22-foot What The Truck. Lee bought it an estate sale in California, where it was used as a bakery delivery truck, and had it shipped back to Michigan.
Due to its smaller size, which makes it difficult to cram-in too much cooking equipment, Lee said the new truck may sell cold items like deli sandwiches.
The idea is to have “a couple trucks so when we travel, we can bring along a couple and create a little truck lot wherever we go,” he said. Lots with multiple food trucks are a common sight in larger cities like Austin, Tex.
Lee hasn’t landed on a name for the truck yet, but “it won’t be ‘What The Truck 2’.”
The new truck could possibly be on the road later this summer.
Also in the works from Lee is a new taquiera bar at 665 Wealthy Street across the street from The Winchester.
The new concept restaurant is working its way through the construction permitting process, but Lee said it is still planning to open this year.
What The Truck already has a busy summer lined-up.
“Every weekend in June, July and getting into August is already booked,” he said. “Right now, we’re trying to find places for it during the week.”
The truck, which serves tacos, hit events around West Michigan as well as taking road trips to Traverse City and the Electric Forest Festival at Rothbury last summer.
“Most likely, we’ll probably do breakfast, maybe on Wealthy Street,” he said. “We may try to get into the farmers market and I have an application to get into the new Downtown Market.”
http://www.mlive.com/business/west-michigan/index.ssf/2013/04/new_grand_rapids_food_truck_in.html
