Food Trucks Remain Driving Force in North Neighborhoods

The food truck craze has grown substantially during the past few years, quickly becoming one of the most popular ways of getting lunch throughout the city and much of downtown. 

These vehicles serve anything from Indian curry to classic cupcakes to burgers, and while grub is typically affordable, they bring a lot of new concerns and regulations.

These worries, often from local brick-and-mortar business owners, can create animosity among food truck operators and entrepreneurs who must pay to maintain their storefronts. 

Businesses and the Chamber of Commerce in East Lakeview successfully stopped a food truck location from being approved last year, while 21 other locations made the cut by the Chicago City Council.

These locations, created to establish parking spots for food trucks in high density areas, like the Loop and some north neighborhoods, work to alleviate some of the issue's tension. 

Because of Chicago's food truck regulations, requiring the mobile eateries to remain 200 feet away from a restaurant's doors, it is difficult to park a food truck in the high-density areas, said Rudy Flores, executive director of the Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce.

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For example, the intersection of Madison Street and Wacker Drive, where 5411 Empanadas regularly sits its truck for lunch hours during the week, is right by a restaurant, a cafe and a bar.

The new City Council ordinance allows food trucks to park in areas like that where it is more difficult to follow the 200-feet boundary regulation.

For this reason, the city's more residential Chicago neighborhoods, such as Lincoln Square and Ravenswood, don't need to see these City Council-designated zones for food trucks.

As long as the vehicles remain 200 feet from restaurant doors, food trucks can still park in these neighborhoods.

"There's less need for these designated safe zones in [Ravenswood and Lincoln Square] because food trucks can easily navigate this neighborhood," Flores said. "It's not that businesses [in this area] are fighting the zones or oppose them."

The same goes for the Bucktown and Wicker Park communities, where many restaurants don't feel the need to fight against food trucks.

Adam Burck, executive director of the Wicker Park Bucktown Chamber of Commerce, echoed Flores' sentiments, saying, "Businesses don't really experience tension with food trucks in this area."

In fact, eateries like the popular taqueria, Big Star, use the novel concept as an opportunity for more marketing. 

One year ago, the much-anticipated Big Star food truck arrived at its Damen and Pierce location, serving tacos and churros from the window.