Hickory Street food truck. (Lethbridge News Now)

By Karsen Marczuk

Lethbridge food truck industry going strong, despite limited events

May 11, 2021 | 2:21 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – The smell of fresh-cooked food fills the air, food trucks are a true sign of summer, and trucks in Lethbridge say they are excited to serve customers again.

Lethbridge is home to about a dozen food trucks, with more visiting the city during peak times. They’re a familiar sight at events, markets, and parking lots around town throughout the summer months. With warmer weather, trucks have begun to hit the road for the season.

Devynn Bohn, Owner of Hickory Street, says the spring has already been busy, allowing them to roll out their truck a month earlier than expected.

“It has been great with the weather, we have been out and about around the city already, and we have a partnership with Lethbridge and District Exhibition as the official pitmaster for the farmers’ market, which is huge for us on Saturdays. I think southern Alberta is a market that hasn`t been hit with food trucks, maybe as aggressively as some of the bigger cities, so I think the future is bright for food trucks in southern Alberta.”

With the possibility of limited events this summer, food trucks are hopeful to continue to stay open despite COVID-19 restrictions closing restaurants and patios.

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“Once restrictions rolled in, we weren`t concerned with how the food truck season would look like, we were worried about having invested into a food truck and restaurant, and how it would all pan out,” said Bohn. “It turns out that food trucks weren’t really hit with restrictions other than social gatherings, but because none of these were formal gatherings, and people kept their six-foot distance in line, we were never targeted or part of the restrictions.”

Because there were so few events in Lethbridge last summer, many events had several food trucks attend to sell their food.

Bohn says she was thankful for these events as their last summer was better than anticipated given the circumstances of the pandemic.

“We did really well, southern Albertans came out in droves no matter where we parked. We were fortunate enough to do some events with places like Tourism Lethbridge, who hosted a Food Truck Friday, Whoop-Up Days also did a food truck drive-through, so, we were able to participate in events like that. We also parked in front of local businesses that invited us to park there in order to sell our food.”

Last year may not have been the ideal time to open a new business, however. That Hawaiian Burger Truck went against all odds and opened up their new truck in Lethbridge.

Owner and operator, Lisa Situ, says it was a wave of emotions, with lots of learning curves thrown in throughout the past year.

“It was kind of exciting, but also worrisome at the same time because we didn’t know what to expect. Food trucks were allowed to run so that was the exciting part, but all the events were cancelled so that was the downside of opening.”

Situ adds, the balancing of supplies is key to staying afloat when running a business, which is the same for a food truck.

“This summer, we’re focusing on the overhead costs and to not overspend or buy too much ingredients, as well as maintenance of the truck, insurance, and permits, just to be careful about all the expenditures will be a smart way to handle the business this year.”

Despite the ever-changing restrictions over the past year, Hickory Street has been able to add another truck to their fleet, which is set to roll out in the next few weeks.

“We have a second food truck rolling out, that’ll be an added benefit,” said Bohn. “We can be in a couple of different locations, and we can hit some of the smaller towns which are huge for food trucks. I hope a lot of food trucks are hitting the small towns because they need that kind of entertainment and fun thing to do this summer.”

Both companies say they are hopeful to have a busy summer and are expecting the industry to continue to grow over the next few years in Lethbridge.

You can stay up to date with local food trucks, including their hours and location, by staying connected with their social media pages.