Two Steeltown food trucks set to show Toronto the Slow how it’s done
Torontonians have, by and large, gotten used to being behind the times when it comes to street food. But we didn’t expect Hamilton to quietly creep into the forefront of the curbside food revolution. This summer, two new food trucks, Cupcake Diner and Gorilla Cheese, are slated to start prowling Steeltown’s mean streets in search of hungry diners—and we have to say, we’re a little jealous.
This Thursday, sweet-toothed Hamiltonians can look forward to satisfying their sugar cravings with Natalie Ravoi’s cupcakes—baked daily with locally sourced, seasonal fruit, of course. The Star reports:
Ravoi, whose fiancé lives in Toronto, admits she looked at Hogtown first but immediately hit a wall with permits, bylaws and licensing. She found Hamilton’s rules for refreshment vehicles “reasonable and doable.”
The city is so keen on new business, it created the Business One-Stop that brings all the needed departments (like zoning and licensing) into one location. Hamilton already has hot dog carts (including one that’s doing crêpes), French fry trucks, ice cream trucks and catering trucks, and doesn’t restrict the type of food that can be sold.
A month after Ravoi’s pink Dodge Sprinter becomes a Hamilton fixture, Graeme Smith and Scott Austin’s renovated 24-foot Purolator truck is slated to hit the pavement. The cheese-loving duo is planning to offer customizable grilled cheese sandwiches featuring Ontario-produced Jensen cheddar. Smith told us that one of the signature sandwiches (still in development) would be “The Turkey Dinner”: roast turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes and bread, with either gruyère or a medium white cheddar to seal the deal.
We were a little miffed the other week when we were dubbed a “beta city,” but if “The Tortoise and the Hare” has taught us anything, it is that faster doesn’t always mean better. This summer we’re expecting some serious hedonism; not only will Len Senater launch The Depaneur, Toronto’s first permanent pop-up resto (well, we hope so), but Zane Caplansky will also pave the way for Toronto street foodies when he rolls out his very own food truck next month.
I think it is outrageous that Toronto, a city with incredibly diverse cuisine and an appetite for it, could have virtually no street food culture. Bureaucracy at its finest. Toronto is a glaring omission from Eat St, the Food Network show that features amazing food trucks across North America. Wake up City Hall!!! Allow vendors to shine instead of presuming to know what it takes to serve great food. Why not send periodic inspectors for health and safety reasons, instead of pre-regulating to the nth degree until no one can move a square inch, nor would want to. Give consumers and vendors some credit.
Caroline,
Thanks for writing the story. As an update, Sweetness Bakery with locations in Hamilton and Burlington just launched our mobile Bakery Experience featuring Cupcakes, cookies, squares, and Sweety Pops TM at a major Hamilton Festival this past weekend.
We are coming to Toronto sooner than later and will liely participate in a few street events later this summer and even see if we can get approval on a mobile Cart license in TO by summer’s end.
We had huge success and have created premium baked goods for street level consumption.
See sweetnessbakery.ca and on Facebook
Steve Deighton
President Sweetness Inc.