‘Overdue’ food trucks arrive downtown

NEWS — Twenty minutes before the Eats Amore food truck opened up in front of the downtown library today (Saturday), parks employees Marilia Vasconcellos and Emma Foreman were there on their morning break.

Owner operators Mikey Wheeler-Johnson and Natalie Basile gladly accommodated them by throwing open the shutters and letting them pick from the menu of homemade Italian pasta and locally sourced organic greens.

It was the first day of a pilot project that will allow food-truck operators to set up at the library-Paramount intersection and Gaglardi Square.

 

“It’s pretty exciting,” said Vasconcellos, a native of Brazil. “It’s mobile and it’s kind of like homemade food, the taste is just not like a restaurant, and you can get it anywhere.”

Foreman seconded that. “It’s nice for us especially because our breaks are kind of on the go, so it’s awesome that we can grab it and go but it’s not fast food. It’s a new thing, it’s time for Kamloops. All the big cities have them.”

Wheeler-Johnson and Basile have high hopes for a good summer, with the pilot project running until the end of October. They’re allowed in the loading-zone space at 10 a.m., but it takes some time to set up. They can stay until 6.

Eats Amore will share the locations with three other operators including The Bellringer Espresso Bus and Cat and Joe’s Pig Rig. “We all sat down collectively and put our schedules together and saw who could take which days, who was available when, and we really all shared the spaces,” said Wheeler-Johnson.

The pair have operated Eats Amore since last August when they finished reconstructing a HandiDart bus they drove down from Fort MacMurray where they’d both worked. Since then they’ve been busy with community events, weddings and other special events all over the city, and three days a week will be part of the downtown pilot project.

Their menu changes based on the time of year. “We like to do locally sourced and certified organic to the best of our abilities, so we like to work with local farmers with whatever’s coming out of the garden,” said Wheeler-Johnson.

“We make our own pasta, we make our own sauces and everything like that. So it’s locally sourced and homemade Italian.” He said building their food truck was a gamble they’re optimistic will pay off.

“There was no zoning that was conducive to what we wanted to do, so the fact that the City changed their bylaws so soon into our endeavor is great. We couldn’t have asked for more. We’ve got pretty high hopes for the summer.”

At Gaglardi Square, Lisa Burgess and Clayton Fisher were preparing chicken and pork tacos and vegetarian chili with cornbread at their family owned Bellringer Express.

They’ve been doing the Farmers Market for the past two years and catering other events. The City’s pilot program is a good opportunity for them.

“It’s a big thing,” said Lisa. “It’s overdue here. People love their food nowadays.”