Gourmet Food Trucks: an Ethnographic Examination of Orlando's Food Truck Scene
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2013 Gourmet Food Trucks: An Ethnographic Examination Of Orlando's Food Truck Scene Zachary Hawk University of Central Florida Part of the Anthropology Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Hawk, Zachary, "Gourmet Food Trucks: An Ethnographic Examination Of Orlando's Food Truck Scene" (2013). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 2751. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/2751 GOURMET FOOD TRUCKS: AN ETHNOGRAPHIC EXAMINATION OF ORLANDO’S FOOD TRUCK SCENE by ZACHARY ARLO HAWK B.A. University of Central Florida 2008 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of Anthropology in the College of Sciences at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Fall Term 2013 Major Professor: Ty Matejowsky © 2013 Zachary Arlo Hawk ii ABSTRACT Gourmet food trucks have emerged as increasingly popular dining alternatives for consumers in today’s urban landscape. Existing literature, as well as my own ethnographic research within Orlando, Florida’s mobile food vending scene, reveals that food truck owner/operators utilize various strategies to establish a viable niche for themselves in this diversified and burgeoning market. Among other things, these strategies include online social networking, creating and maintaining a recognizable brand identity, collaborating with local retailers and bar owners, and incorporating organic and locally produced ingredients in their dishes whenever possible. As in other parts of the country, there appears to be a growing concern in greater Orlando about local diets and the profound and subtle messages it conveys about contemporary eating habits. I contend that dining at gourmet food trucks represents a legitimate declaration of consumer identity about individual beliefs and values. In my thesis, I examine how Orlando’s gourmet food trucks offer consumers a greater selection of food options and allow locals to participate in a viable social network and community. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Foremost, I would like to thank all of my interviewees, Joey, Viveca, Joel, Steve, and Tim. Thank you for your time and interest in my research and above all your pleasantness and amazing personalities. Thank you also to Viveca and Hakan, and Steve and Tim, for allowing me the opportunity to work alongside you as well as your consistent attempts to pay me for it. The experience and knowledge I gained was always more than worth the little help I was able to provide. I would also like to thank all of my friends who accompanied me to different food truck events. Although it was not too hard to convince you to join me; nonetheless, your perspective and company helped me gain further insight into what being a member of Orlando’s gourmet food truck scene really meant. Finally, I would like to thank my advisor and committee chair member, Dr. Matejowsky. If it were not for his patience and helpfulness throughout this process, I would never have survived until the end. In that same respect, I would also like to thank Dr. Geiger and Dr. Reyes- Foster in agreeing to be on my committee and for their patience as well. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................................... viii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................... 4 Materials and Methods ................................................................................................................ 4 Interview Questions and Participant Selection ........................................................................... 5 Limitations .................................................................................................................................. 6 Overview of Chapters ................................................................................................................. 7 CHAPTER THREE: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................. 9 Anthropology of Food and Sydney Mintz .................................................................................. 9 History....................................................................................................................................... 11 From Cattle Drives to World War Two ................................................................................ 11 Lunch Trucks to Gourmet ..................................................................................................... 14 Contemporary Gourmet Food Trucks ....................................................................................... 18 Academic Considerations ..................................................................................................... 19 Shedding the “Roach Coach” Stigma ................................................................................... 22 Legal Regulations and the Battle versus Standalone Restaurants ........................................ 25 Social Media ......................................................................................................................... 30 Being Green .......................................................................................................................... 32 Chapter Summary ..................................................................................................................... 34 v CHAPTER FOUR: GOURMET FOODTRUCKS OF ORLANDO ............................................ 35 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 35 Case Studies .............................................................................................................................. 36 The Yum Yum Cupcake Truck ............................................................................................. 37 SwedeDish ............................................................................................................................ 46 Over Rice .............................................................................................................................. 57 Dixieland Diner ..................................................................................................................... 66 Case Study Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 77 CHAPTER FIVE: DRIVE ALONGS AND OBSERVATIONS .................................................. 79 Introduction ............................................................................................................................... 79 Community: Different Neighborhoods, Different People ........................................................ 80 Similarities ............................................................................................................................ 80 Differences ............................................................................................................................ 87 A Different Business Model and City Regulations............................................................... 90 Community Within: Gourmet Food Truck Owners .................................................................. 95 CHAPTER SIX: DISCUSSION ................................................................................................... 99 First Impressions and Introduction ........................................................................................... 99 Research Questions Revisited ................................................................................................... 99 Slow Economy Equals Fast Food Trucks and Anti-corporation Attitudes ......................... 100 vi Socio-economic Implications.............................................................................................. 102 What is Gourmet? Food and Political Afterthought .......................................................... 104 Gourmet Food Trucks: Communal and Self Identity ......................................................... 107 CHAPTER SEVEN: CONCLUSION ........................................................................................ 112 Future Research ...................................................................................................................... 113 APPENDIX A: IRB APPROVAL LETTER .............................................................................. 114 REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................... 116 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Chuckwagon in Wyoming from the 1880s.................................................................... 12 Figure 2: Lunch Wagon from the late 1800's ............................................................................... 14 Figure 3: Good