The Spovangelist

Everyone knows that “Video Killed the Radio Star,” but sometimes I wonder if all the drive-thru chains on 3rd are part of what is strangling a more vibrant food cart culture in Downtown Spokane. McDonald’s should change its slogan to “Killing Customers and the Competition since 1955.” At first it might seem a little lofty to talk about food carts in terms of local culture, but when the dining format requires a behavior change, culture is key to consider.

So what do independently owned food carts and generic multinational chain restaurants have in common? They are both forms of “fast food.” After placing an order your meal is served within minutes. One offers a great degree of culinary variety, “sidewalk spunk,” potentially healthy dishes, circulates money through the local economy more efficiently, and provides management and staff more tangible pathways to career advancement in the food industry.

The other is tightly managed and unimaginative, creates cultural dead zones in urban environments, causes diabetes, inflates the corporate consolidation of agribusiness, and promotes working environments that position employees to be a drain on social systems. I’ll let you guess which is which. Why would you want to scarf down this while you could savor that?

L: Burger King on PictureMyFood.com, R: Pop-Up Spokane

Distasteful as it may be, traditional fast food is not the only food cart-killing culprit in Spokane. Excessive regulation seems to be an issue as well.

To get a year long permit to operate on the street you have to go to the environmental health office and fill out the paperwork, bring approved plans by an engineer regarding your cart, get it approved, and pay the fee. Total turnaround time of about three weeks. Compared to other counties, Spokane is very expensive. A temporary permit that costs $15 in  Colville costs $130 here. To sell meat is four hundred eighty something. Prices double if you don’t get it in two weeks early.

-Local Food Vendor

It seems as if Spokane is determined to cram its entire food cart scene into one week of maniacal caloric consumption: Pig Out in the Park. What exactly is standing in our way of having a more sustained sidewalk presence?

The biggest factor is that the county requires vendors to have a state certified truck or trailer to operate with a mobile food permit.  Bathroom access is another hurdle along with the need to use a commercial kitchen other than the truck or trailer to prepare and store the food. The reality is that none of these necessarily rule out a larger street food scene in this town which leads me to believe that Spokane just lacks the people motivated enough to get it done.

The entire food scene is marked by one hard to ignore fact: we have a small percentage of chef-owned restaurants. Innovation and advancement of food culture in a community tends to be driven by people who have motivations other than just making money. Jeremy Hansen has been able to grab the city’s attention because he has not played to the middle.

The trend that will make the greatest impact on this community will be when more cooks get the entrepreneurial bug. Food carts are a less expensive way of getting this done but with an unproven marketplace, some worry whether they can cover the cost of a certified truck or trailer. The good thing is that change is happening, albeit at a slower pace than some of us might like.

-Chef David Blaine

Why should we care about the lack of food carts in Spokane? Because they indicate a kind of social environment that speaks volumes about our region’s chosen lifestyle and culture. Portland has almost 400 food carts, compared to less than a dozen around here. The Portland food carts are so vibrant they have garnered national attention. This is a tangible homing beacon to creative class types all across the world. This is not just about making people who already live in Spokane happier, it is about being competitive in a global marketplace. Note to any antsy vendors in the 503: Spokane is ready to embrace your business. Now pack up and move on over, we are ready for you! Or better yet, young local entrepreneurs, here is your chance!

• SpoCOOL covers Tacos del Sol.
• Taste of the Town on Jon Howard’s hot dogs.
• SpoCOOL on Pop-Up.
• Luke’s “Mobile Feasts” article, coincidentally written while I was away. The fact that multiple people are thinking about this all at once is just more proof that Spokane’s mass consciousness is shifting.
• Nifty Inlander food cart locator tool.
• Maybe the City could rip off this packet.
• “Food carts take the curse off Portland’s parking lots.”

Tags:   Competition · Creative Culture · Local Food · Rants6 Comments