By Stan Golovchuk | Evanston.Patch.com
Northbrook’s only food truck, the Roadside Kitchen, sits at the corner of Dundee Road and Skokie Boulevard Tuesday through Thursday, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. It’s also the only place you can still find an original-recipe Lucky Cake, the small, moist chocolate and vanilla cakes that were popular in the 50s and 60s.
The food truck is owned and operated by Joe and Louise Rycraft, who say they’ve held Northbrook’s only food truck license since November of last year.
“We decided not to do traveling [service] like all the other food trucks do because we wanted to find regulars,” Louise said. “We didn’t want to fight for spots. It’s less stressful that way.”
The Northbrook residents makes most of their food in the truck, but occasionally rent kitchens to prepare for high volume service such as catering. They’re also the only distributor of classic Lucky Cakes, using the original recipe people were eating 50 years ago.
“For those who remember this snack cake treat never forgot how great they were,” the couple’s website reads. “In the late 1950’s & 60’s Lucky Cakes were found mostly in the Ma & Pa corner stores and major chain grocery stores.”
The Lucky Cakes are also for sale online in chocolate, vanilla, red velvet, coconut, banana and hazelnut.
The couple has been married for 38 years and “worked together since day one,” Louise said. “He was 21, I was 19.”
The food truck serves Italian beef sandwiches, Vienna hot dogs and meatballs, and even accepts credit card. Starting next week, the food truck will also serve shaved ice.
About this column: A look at unusual eats around the North Shore.
http://evanston.patch.com/articles/northbrook-s-only-food-truck-still-carries-lucky-cake
