Cincinnati hasn’t made it easy in the past couple years for mobile food vendors. With restrictions barring curbside service after midnight and removal of the vending tents from Fountain Square (due to aesthetic disturbance), the food truck culture didn’t seem to have a bright future downtown.
That changed Dec. 2, when signs went up around Fountain Square posting 12 spots for mobile food vendors to park and serve. City Council member Laure Quinlivan created the program which passed Council unanimously.
Several vendors have started serving from the new spots, which have created opportunities for new ventures, too. Tom + Chee, who had had one of the Fountain Square tent spots, has approached Qunlivan with interest in launching a truck, and a pizza truck slated for launch in early 2012, Pizza Bomba, plans to take advantage of the new spots.
Pizza Bomba, which should be receiving a truck within the next month, has even had their new set of wheels outfitted with windows on both sides to take advantage of one of the new spots.
“We can take one of the spots on Fifth Street where a lot of other people can’t use because their windows face the other way,” says Terri Wilson, co-owner of Pizza Bomba. “We’re excited to get out there and try it.”
Wilson and Bill Stone both have day jobs that may affect their ability to serve lunch, but they won’t let schedules stop them. “We’ll definitely be down there for events,” Wilson says.
As they wait for their truck and approval from the Health Department, the couple hopes that a more vibrant food truck to community will grow out of the expanded accessibility.
“I think it is a step in the right direction,” Wilson says. “I’d love to see even more food truck-based events around the city.”
By Evan Wallis
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