Design a Better Boston Food Truck Park

[Scalziand]

Sadly, in Worcester the city made a regulation that food trucks couldn't park within something like a quarter mile of an existing brick and mortar restaurant, which effectively banned food trucks from the city. That's been eased now at least.

www.telegram.com/article/20131009/NEWS/310099881/1116

 

[Shepard]

In other cities, food trucks serve to lower the barrier to entry for a food business. Typically you'll find a much more diverse scene: Louisiana style cooking, trashy porn-burger style trucks, downhome southern food, comfort food with a twist with some lesser known ethnic foods thrown in for good measure.

Boston's food truck scene is pretty weird in that we've fostered what has essentially become a bunch of chains. There are what, a bajillion Bon Me's, 20 clovers and a smattering of Chicken and Rice trucks.

Boston's food truck scene is really pretty boring. Wouldn't be surprised if the city's rather heavy handed approach is part of the reason.

I actually think you have this backwards. The trucks have massively lowered barriers to entry, and in fact from my discussions with the proprietors, the system is fairly easy to start in and streamlined to operate in.

The problem is the heavy-handed approach to restaurants. It is much, MUCH harder for successful food trucks to make the jump to profitable brick-and-mortar enterprises in Boston than in any of these other cities. Over-regulation and liquor licenses are the major culprits. Hell, Clover in Brookline Village has been running sparkling water out their beer taps for two years, and somehow don't even have a license for real indoor seating (wtf). So, the successful food trucks just keep opening more food trucks, crowding out new upstarts.

 

[underground]

I'm on the tail-end of sometime up in Scandinavia - the absolute, no questions asked hardest adjustment to make coming back is that I can't grab a road beer and walk to a friend's house.

I spent a semester at U Copenhagen. Can confirm that this is a major selling point. Quick point on trash; bottle deposit (at least back when I was there) was 50% of the cost of a beer. Collect two bottles, turn them in, and you've got yourself a new beer.

 

[ErnieAdams]

Hell, Clover in Brookline Village has been running sparkling water out their beer taps for two years, and somehow don't even have a license for real indoor seating (wtf).

Only went in there once but I recall that the seating problem was because they hadn't been able to open up a public bathroom. See also 4A Coffee on the other end of Harvard St.

The hierarchy of the food trucks in Dewey Square is pretty established, I've noticed. To the points made above, Bon Me and Clover are in the same spots all day every day except when a farmer's market is set up. The newer entries are pushed farther from South Station or even all the way down to Congress Street behind the mural/vent building. It'd at least give the appearance of a more dynamic scene if they rotated around the block every once in a while.

 

[HenryAlan]

The parks and canals ringing the old city (really any open space in the city) are packed to the gills, and not with tourists or their ilk. It's just full with people, more often than not sitting down having a beer.

I think this, more than anything else, is why public space is so successful in Europe, and so... not in the U.S. I don't always want something to eat, but I do enjoy sitting out in a plaza or park. However, it only works if there is something in it for me besides people watching/vitamin D collection. If it's morning, I want coffee and a newspaper. If it's mid-afternoon, I want a beer. Boston is in desperate need of beer gardens. There should be two or three in the Common, one at Copley Square, one at Government Center, three or four on the Greenway. It would hugely improve the utilization of these spaces without needing to resort to complex programming.

 

[datadyne007]

I think this, more than anything else, is why public space is so successful in Europe, and so... not in the U.S. I don't always want something to eat, but I do enjoy sitting out in a plaza or park. However, it only works if there is something in it for me besides people watching/vitamin D collection. If it's morning, I want coffee and a newspaper. If it's mid-afternoon, I want a beer. Boston is in desperate need of beer gardens. There should be two or three in the Common, one at Copley Square, one at Government Center, three or four on the Greenway. It would hugely improve the utilization of these spaces without needing to resort to complex programming.

I just got back from Chicago and the new Riverwalk actually has a little beer-drinking/sitting area along it now. Navy Pier has a big beer garden too.