‘I'm starving, where are you guys today?’

"I just got a text from someone, saying: 'I'm starving, where are you guys today?'” says Martin van Petten from Broodje Ben. Milan van Dun, who runs Last Vegas, confirms that rotating spots makes things harder for the customers. “They really have to hunt for my spot sometimes, wondering where they’re going to find me. Even after six months, people still ask me if my truck is new at Utrecht Science Park." 

While the university intended to offer diverse lunch options across Science Park, Broodje Ben believes that having all trucks close to each other defeats that purpose. "I believe most people choose for themselves where to grab a bite, even if that means walking 100 metres further to get to their favourite truck."

The question is whether customers are bothered by having to look for their favourite truck. Following the food truck owners' complaints, DUB posted a poll on Instagram, asking if the trucks should be given a permanent pitch. The results were clear: 70 people voted in favour, while 40 people preferred to find their favourite food truck at a different spot each day. 

If it were up to the vendors, they would have a permanent pitch. According to them, rotating 3four food trucks may sound good on paper, but in practice, it only demands logistical exertion, more work, and less sustainable practices, not to mention that customers get confused.

A car to move the truck
The logistics of relocation take a huge amount of preparation. Mo Korkmaz from Mo & Sons describes the ordeal: "I have to shift the fryer from one place to another. Then I have to place everything on the ground, secure it and hope nothing falls over or breaks. My eyesight isn’t that great, so I can’t even move the truck myself, my sons have to do that now. But, even for them, moving such a large cart every day is very dangerous. It is risky not just for ourselves but for everyone around us."

Martin, from Broodje Ben, says: "Moving a food truck requires a lot of improvising. Since all our supplies are kept within a few square metres, accidents like spilling a pan of gravy do happen. Not only is that unnecessary waste, but if you can stay in the same place, you get less wear and tear, both on the food truck as well as the inventory."

The vendors also believe that a permanent pitch would be more sustainable. Van Dun, from Last Vegas, explains: “I don't have a car, we use electric bikes for our business. Fortunately, I can almost always borrow a car with a tow bar from a friend who lives in Science Park. But he will move away at the beginning of 2024, so then we will probably have to rent a car to switch places twice a week." 

Broodje Ben also has to be moved by car. Three times a week, a heavy-duty vehicle needs to drive down from Maarssen to move the cart to another location. “If I had a fixed spot, I would only need to have a small car or an electric scooter come for supplies once a week."

With a permanent location and a ten-year contract, Broodje Ben would also be able to invest much more in sustainability than it does now. "I can’t change anything now because the two-year contract I currently have is too short to make long-term investments. I’d like to sell smoothies and put solar panels on the roof, for example. I would even like to buy a new truck."

Ideally, the food truck owners would like to be grouped on the square near Spar. This way, customers would easily choose from the selection on offer, says Last Vegas. Broodje Ben emphasises that he doesn’t consider his colleagues as rivals: "If we all stand together, we can strengthen each other. Then we’ll lure all the hungry souls towards the square."

Utrecht University reacts
Merijn Smelt of the university's Facility Service Centre is surprised by the vendors’ complaints. According to him, at the beginning of the lease agreement, the university communicated very clearly that the vendors would switch spots "because we like to offer varied lunch choices on each spot."

Another reason to rotate is that there are fewer customers at certain spots, so rotating gives everyone a chance to get the best spots. "By rotating, we want to divide the rows a bit so people move more and there is more going on." 

He also states that the whole point of having a food truck is to move it around, so that shouldn't pose a problem. "If all the food trucks are located in a single place, customers who are a bit further away wouldn’t come anymore," Smelt believes. However, the university has not conducted any research on this. 

Asked to what extent the policy of rotating the food trucks fits in with Utrecht University's sustainability ambitions, Smelt replies: "If the food trucks want to become more sustainable, that is their responsibility."

For now, Smelt sees no good arguments for a fixed pitch, but "goals are not set in stone. Maybe it will be possible to implement changes in the future, but not now."