Food trucks welcome customers during warmer weather
Mobile eateries are welcoming the arrival of warmer weather and sunshine as spring approaches.
Chef Baldee’s Pizza, located at 1013 Seneca St., held a soft opening this week, returning since the truck closed down mid-November due to winter weather.
“After doing this for 14 years, I figured out when it gets super cold between Christmas time and after New Years, you just got to batten down the hatches and hope for the best,” Chef Baldee's Pizza owner Chuck Baldee said. "Then when the springtime arrives, like when we got these 60-degree temperatures, you come out swinging.”
With business back open, customers are returning with a hunger for their favorites.
“The one thing that really puts me on the map is my pepperoni pizza,” Baldee said. “It’s a 17-inch pizza with 93 slices of pepperoni.”
KolbDon’s, which can be found most days at the Deluxe Truck Stop at 4500 Packers Ave., stayed open throughout the winter.
Customers would still visit, but they noticed a significant increase in visitors once warmer weather arrived.
“The first day that it was nice, we sold out in probably four hours, so it’s definitely an immediate difference,” owner Kolby Peters said.
KolbDons offers a menu with South Side originals like chili dogs and homemade Polish sausage, but they have quite a few more options.
“Our brisket grilled cheese has been our best seller for the last year,” Peters said.
Another food truck called Chaddy’s can be found at the same truck stop. It's been in the area for the last six months, serving up a customer favorite called the “Big Sexy.”
“It’s a double patty with double cheddar, double barbecue sauce, double bacon served with fresh homemade kettle chips that are fried every morning,” owner Chad Watson said.
Watson said it was a battle making it through the winter, but now he is beginning to see more customers and truck drivers visit his business.
“Come try me,” he said. “I’ll give everybody the George Foreman guarantee. If it’s not good, the next meal is on me.”
