FLINT (WJRT) – (07/23/14) – It’s a restaurant on wheels – and it’s ready to roll into communities across Mid-Michigan.
“It’s been over a year in the making and we’re finally making things happen. To have the truck here and to have all this coming to a reality is just so awesome,” said Danny Moilanen, owner of Vehicle City Tacos.
Vehicle City Tacos came to life after Moilanen spotted a Chevy food truck on eBay. Thanks to a little start up money, he was able to bring it back to Flint.
“We received some grant funding through the Michigan Economic Development Corporation for about $10,000 in grant funding, and we just won a $5,000 prize through the Drive Flint Social Entrepreneurship Challenge, just thrilled,” he said.
Head Chef Cristian Gilbert has worked in restaurants across the midwest, from fine dining to coney islands. He’s creating a menu that includes vegetarian and vegan options made with ingredients from Genesee County farmers.
“Anything from soul food to korean barbeque, to your traditional tacos el pesco, just all across the board. Kind of reinventing the wheel with the taco,” he said.
The guys are still waiting on their final license to come through. Until then, they’re staying busy, using temporary permits.
“We’re doing catering and big festival events. We’re hoping to eventually start doing lunches at a lot of the big employers like Flint Assembly, Truck and Bus, Hurley,” Moilanen said.
The long-term goal is to bring the truck to downtown Flint, on city streets, which currently isn’t allowed. Moilanen envisions Vehicle City Tacos as a late night option for the bar crowd and college students.
“Like what you’d see if you go to New York, or Portland, or LA or Austin, or any of these other major cities that young people are moving to. We hope that we can do some really cool things and make it more fun and exciting to be in Flint,” he said.
For updates on where you can find Vehicle City Tacos, click HERE.
Original Article by Marc Jacobson for abc12.com
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