Mark Broadfoot moved to Sudbury a few years ago to open up a supplement shop and personal training spot and heard about the popularity of food trucks.
This year, he decided to get into the market.
Originally from Wasaga Beach, Broadfoot has been in Sudbury for the past six years managing BOSS Supplements and Ironworx on Lasalle Boulevard, so the parking lot on the corner of Auger and Lasalle in New Sudbury was a fitting spot for his truck.
“Everyone is always scoping out the best food trucks,” he said. “I know the RIV in Sturgeon Falls is popular and I wanted to invest in RIV quality food.”
With the quality of ingredients, he has also brought great marketing and exceptional branding to the area with a swank clean and modern truck that he designed himself.
“I spent a lot of cash renovating this truck and bringing everything up to code and beyond,” he said. “I have an experienced chef who has been in the business for over a decade and wanted him to enjoy a high end kitchen. We installed new fryers, fryer warmers, nicely tiled walls and new counters for refined food.”
In two months, The Food Truck has already served its 2,000th burger.
And that is Broadfoot’s favourite item on the menu.
The smash burger contains local Tarini’s ground beef that is fresh and not frozen when it is smashed on the grill. Once cooked, the burger is wrapped in a fresh baked bun.
Other hot items are the fried and signature pogos, the grilled cheese with bacon and the poutine.
“I have become more of a food critic than I ever used to be and these burgers are splendid,” he says.
Broadfoot has teamed up with Tarini’s for proteins, Ace Bakery in Toronto for buns and the same supplier that the RIV in Sturgeon uses for everything else to set the bar as high as possible.
He just experienced his first food festival a few weeks ago with the food truck attending the Northern Lights Festival.
“We now have regulars! The reviews have been great and focused on quality, which is exactly what I wanted,” Broadfoot adds.
For the sweet tooth, The Food Truck serves up funnel cakes, churros and ice cream.
Broadfoot is keeping the hours so that the truck is open every day of the week, with Sundays being the busiest day.
“I think it is a combination of people being tired from the weekend,” he said. “Maybe they were at camp or they needed a break from cooking.”
There are plans to expand already. Broadfoot will be purchasing a drivable food truck so one truck stays for the regulars, and one will head to events such as weddings, catering venues, food festivals and concerts.
He’s also toying with a fall menu for when the weather gets cooler featuring hot chocolate, chilli and soup bowls.
The Food Truck can be found on Facebook at The Food Truck Sudbury or at its website www.foodtrucksudbury.ca.The Food Truck hours are 11 a.m. - 9 p.m. every day.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
