By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
“Food Truck Fridays” will soon be giving some Wood County employees a reason to leave their packed lunches at home.
Who wants the standard fare of peanut butter and jelly, when they can dine on barbecue, chili and cornbread, or hot dogs with all types of toppings?
When Bowling Green City Council passed an ordinance earlier this year allowing food trucks in the city, it got some county employees thinking.
Staff at Wood County Job and Family Services, on East Gypsy Lane Road, approached Maricarol Torsok-Hrabovsky, special projects manager at their office, about arranging for food trucks to visit during lunch time.
“We’re pretty much out where there’s not a lot of food actually,” Torsok-Hrabovsky said.
She checked with the county commissioners, who had no objections.
She called other county offices in the East Gypsy Lane complex – like Wood Lane, the Sheriff’s Office, and Wood County Health Department – and found out that their employees were also hungry for a change of pace.
“We got interest from several of them. So we decided to try it out,” Torsok-Hrabovsky said.
Then she talked with Joe Fawcett, assistant municipal administrator for Bowling Green, about local vendors. Fawcett directed her to the Wood County Health Department.
Torsok-Hrabovsky quickly found out what food truck vendors are in demand.
“Food trucks book really, really fast,” she said. With all the fairs and festivals, “they have their summers already planned.”
Weenie Dawgs at BG downtown farmers market
But she was able to reserve a few vendors – creating “Food Truck Fridays” on July 27 and Aug. 17, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The trucks will set up in the lot behind the Wood County Department of Job and Family Services.
The Food Truck Friday on July 27 will feature Country Lane BBQ and The Little Stand on the Prairie. Country Lane BBQ specializes in pulled pork “sundaes.” The Little Stand on the Prairie’s menu includes grilled bologna, mashed potato bowls, chili and cornbread, plus strawberries with homemade biscuits and whipped cream.
“That was the big sell,” Torsok-Hrabovsky said.
Boy at farmers market eats hot dog from Weenie Dawgs.
The Food Truck Friday on Aug. 17 will feature Country Lane BBQ, The Little Stand on the Prairie, and Weenie Dawgs. Weenie Dawgs sells hot dogs with all types of toppings, plus walking tacos.
Many of the county employees at the East Gypsy Lane complex grab a bag of fast food and bring it back to work for lunch. Torsok-Hrabovsky is hoping they will want to change up their menu.
“Maybe they will walk on over,” she said.
Once the summer is over, Torsok-Hrabovsky would like to continue the Food Truck Fridays once a month. “Maybe we could get a few more vendors,” she said.
