ree
NO
Gourmet food trucks spice up lunch hour for workers at Farbman properties.
NPt
By Robin Schwartz Contributing Writer
• 1 1 1111111Iliglii6
-4 r!6■1111
•
.
M
here's a new, affordable
way to dine and dash in
Metro Detroit and busy
professionals are quite
literally eating it up. Food
trucks rallies — large
gatherings of mobile food
vendors around office
complexes, events and central busi-
ness districts — are a phenomenon
gaining popularity across the coun-
try and in Michigan.
The Farbman Group, one of the
largest full-service real estate com-
panies in the Midwest, has teamed
up with the nonprofit Michigan
Mobile Food Vendors Association
to organize several rallies around
Farbman properties like the Fisher
Building and New Center One on
West Grand Boulevard in Detroit, at
Sheffield Office Park in Troy and the
Bingham Office Center in Bingham
Farms.
During an April rally billed as
"Dine and Drive in the D," thou-
sands of nearby employees and curi-
ous onlookers lined up to sample
the freshly prepared gourmet food
that rolled up on Third Street
between Lothrop and West Grand
Boulevard. About a dozen food
trucks participated including-Treat
Dreams (ice cream), Jacques' Tacos,
El Guapo Fresh Mexican Grill, Taco
Mama, Frank's Anatra (hot dogs and
sausage), Concrete Cuisine, Ned's
Travel Burger, The People's Pierogi
Collective, Cheese Dream, Debajo
del Sol and Cheese Wizard.
"Food trucks and food carts are
part of the creation of a cool city,"
says Andy Farbman, CEO of the
Farbman Group. "They're currently
producing some of the greatest
innovation in the restaurant indus-
try. When we talk about a Detroit
comeback what we're seeing is that,
like in other cool cities, having food
trucks creates an atmosphere people
want to be part of."
The menus are eclectic and
unique, offering customers an op-
portunity to get out of a lunchtime
40 October 2012 I
IUD MEAD
rut. The Concrete Cuisine truck
serves "wedges, sweeties and fric-
ides" (crispy potato wedges, sweet
potato fries and lightly fried dill
pickles) with all of its made-to-order
dishes. Other menu items include
"Da-Vine," a panko-crusted fried
green tomato sandwich, and "Oscar,"
thick sliced, all-beef grilled bologna,
sweet barbeque onion marmalade,
American cheese, romaine lettuce
and yellow mustard on a toasted
Kaiser roll. Another truck, Debajo
del Sol, features traditional Spanish
dishes including mixed paella, tapas,
a chorizo corn dog, and a pulled
chicken sandwich cooked in a tra-
ditional saffron and almond sauce.
Prices vary, but many items
can be purchased for less
than $10.
"We've seen at our build-
ings that they create buzz
whenever we host these
events," Farbman adds.
"People come from miles
away to partake in the vari-
ous offerings, whether it's
the hot jalapefio ice cream
from Treat Dreams or the
fresh-that-day burger from
Ned's Travel Burger."
KITCHEN TO CART
courtyard (see sidebar). They do
prep work in a commissary kitchen
(which is required by the state)
but make the sandwiches to order.
Michigan food trucks must also be
licensed, pass health inspections
and pay various fees. Cheese Dream
participates in local food truck ral-
lies and is also exploring farmers
markets and catering. The business,
still in its first year, recently booked
a wedding. They'll provide the late-
night snacks for guests.
"The exciting part is that it's on
wheels," Ceresnie says. "It's mobile
so we can move around to find our
best markets?'
Ceresnie grew up in Farmington
Jordan Ceresnie and Afrim Ramaxhiku of Cheese Dream
sell artisan grilled cheese sandwiches.
For Jordan Ceresnie, 25,
of Farmington, co-owning
a food cart is both an entrepreneur-
ial and culinary dream come true.
The young Jewish chef owns Cheese
Dream with his Muslim business
partner Afrim Ramaxhiku. The duo
serves up a variety of artisan grilled
cheese sandwiches and soups with
pickles and chips. Some are more
adventurous like their mac-and-
cheese grilled cheese. Other offer-
ings include a cream cheese and
Nutella (chocolate hazelnut spread)
sandwich, fresh mozzarella with
roasted tomato and olive tapanade,
and fire-roasted peppers, arugula,
balsamic and Monterey Jack cheese.
Cheese Dream is based in Ann Ar-
bor as part of the Mark's Carts food
Hills and is a classically trained chef.
He attended Napa Valley Cooking
School in St. Helena, Calif., and
completed a one-year organic farm-
ing program at Michigan State Uni-
versity. He's worked with the Matt
Prentice Restaurant Group (now the
Epicurean Group) and Zingerman's
Roadhouse in Ann Arbor. Ceresnie
decided it was time to move from
the kitchen to the cart and focus on
comfort food. So, he and Ramax-
hiku purchased their own cart (they
cost from a few thousand dollars
up to $20,000; trucks range from
$40,000-$100,000) and opened up
shop. So far they say the venture is a
success and there's room to grow.
"I've worked in kitchens for a
while but I think now is a great time
to be part of the food truck scene in
Michigan," Ceresnie says. "Owning
the cart is the perfect blend between
being the cook and the server. We
get to interact with customers on
an intimate level. There's no space
between you and the customer and
that's a really cool interaction. I also
love the free-spirited side to having
a food truck and not being in one
location all the time."
MOBILE MEAL APPEAL
So what's the appeal of these
mobile meals? Supporters say
convenience is a big part of it. The
trucks come to the customers, but
they don't stay long. The city of
Ferndale has made food truck rallies
a monthly event; one Thursday a
month from 4-9 p.m. outside the
Rust Belt Market at the corner of
Nine Mile and Woodward. Scott
Maloney, owner of Treat Dreams
(ice cream) in Ferndale and a
member of the mobile food vendor's
association, has helped organize
rallies in Ferndale, Royal Oak, at the
Farbman properties and elsewhere.
"We get hundreds of people. It's a
great vibe. It turns into a real social
atmosphere," Maloney explains.
"In a lot of local office buildings
and complexes, you have to get in
your car and drive a couple of miles
just to find fast food. Or, if there's a
cafeteria nearby, you eat at the same
cafeteria every day and you're dy-
ing for something new With these
trucks, the food is awesome. There's
so much variety and each truck has
a different style?'
The Treat Dreams truck is a
converted shuttle bus that's painted
bright purple. Maloney carries push
carts on it to sell his innovative
homemade ice cream and ice cream
sandwiches. Exotic flavors include
honey lavender, pistachio wasabi,
coconut chai-tea, salty caramel and
chocolate-covered potato chip.
www.redthreadmagazine.com