On an overcast August morning, the Mercer Island Sunday Farmers Market was hopping with families pushing strollers, grandparents, teens and couples. They bought cherries, corn, pastries and ice cream, mostly from vendors shaded by tents. Food trucks lined both sides of 77th Avenue Southeast. A long line of people stretched way, way past the market’s boundary. What were they doing? Mike’s Shave Ice food truck is so popular, people waited 40 minutes to be served.
I beelined past them to Wise Guy Italian Food Truck. Two weeks earlier, I’d discovered their meatball hero. A quote from the memoir, “I Regret Almost Everything,” by legendary restaurateur Keith McNally captured my feelings. “Where food is concerned, the past is a 4-star country.” Three beef meatballs on a crusty baguette covered in marinara sauce and topped with melted provolone and mozzarella transported me to my Brooklyn childhood. Yum.
Wise Guy Brandon Salmeri grew up on Staten Island, New York, and couldn’t find a good sausage, peppers and onions (SPO) hero when he moved to the Pacific Northwest, so he created one. He’s operated food trucks for 16 years and has five different ones featuring panini, quesadillas, salmon, barbecue and Wise Guy, whose only two menu items are the meatball sub and an SPO stuffed into a hollowed-out baguette.
We discussed the business end of food trucks. “On a good day,” he said, “Wise Guy fills 300 orders.” He bought his panini truck from a school district’s fire department for $10,000 and built out his kitchen for $20,000. “To hire someone else to do it, you’d easily pay $60,000, but you can make that back in a year.”
Nico and Yeni Morales are the husband and wife behind Las Bugambilias, a Mexican-fusion truck in the Chevron gas station in Mercer Island’s Town Center. People come from both the east and west sides for their generously portioned burritos and tacos filled with succulent camarones (shrimp), melt-in-your-mouth arrachera (skirt steak) butter-soft lengua (tongue) and their newest offering: fish and chips. Every bite tastes of Jalisco and Hidalgo kitchens. “We make it with love,” they said, smiling. They work Monday to Friday on Mercer Island, and are booked solid doing events on Saturdays through November.
A few blocks away, the Shell gas station on the corner of 78th Avenue Southeast and Southeast 28th Steet is home to Ali’s Foodies, an Indian and Pakistani food truck with Zabiha Halal certification. Majid Ali, the owner and single operator of the truck, is in his first summer on Mercer Island. The Peshawar native came to the US 13 years ago and was inspired by family recipes to create unique dishes like his Zinger burger, a crisp chicken burger (no beef is served here) with just the right amount of spice on a soft bun. Open from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., he enjoys being his own boss. “Serving people good food makes me happy,” he said, adding that Zabiha Halal follows strict guidelines, making it spiritually lawful for Muslims to eat. Ali aspires to one day franchise his recipes. His hard work is paying off — patrons come from all over the region for his unique foods.
I had one more truck to visit, but Baitong on Wheels, behind the north end QFC was closed. Next door, Mercer Islander Mia Vorkoper, a rising college junior, worked the counter at Hub Boba. “Come back for Baitong’s crispy chicken and Pad Thai,” she suggested, while preparing the shop’s “Limited Offer” Dubai Chocolate and Whipped Cream: mini pancakes with pistachio cream, Kadaifa threads (angel hair pastry) whipped cream and chocolate sauce.
Some brick-and-mortar restaurants resent food trucks. A brewery owner told me, “They have much lower overhead, furniture, fixture and equipment costs, payrolls, and don’t pay commercial rent.” With apologies to Dr Suess, he added, “I do not like them with a float. I do not like them here or there. I do not like them anywhere.” But the public can’t get enough of them. Food trucks are part of a growing trend that’s here to stay.
Mercer Island has lunch and dinner food truck options every day of the week. Which one will become your favorite?
Meanderings is an award-winning travel column by Mercer Island resident, Mindy Stern. For more essays, or to comment, visit her website www.mindysternauthor.com
