Sydney Daly-Weber
Staff Writer
Burgers, hot dogs, barbecue, Hawaiian food, sandwiches, loaded fries and scrumptious food filled the Glendora Friends Church parking lot from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on May 1.
The Glendora Friends Church will now host this event Wednesday nights for anybody looking for a good time with friends and family, filled with upbeat music, interesting accessories and creative food.
“The event is also for local outreach,” church member Steve Osborn said.
“It is mainly for meeting our neighbors,” he said.
This weekly event is a fundraiser for the church’s Family Camp in July.
On May 1, there were five trucks: Stuff It Burgers + More, Crazy Train Barbecue, Azteca Truck, Sam Choy’s Pineapple Express and Meet N’ Potatoes. There was also a booth for Sam’s Kettle Corn.
The event was organized by Fred Duran, owner of Freddy’s Food Court, which is a marketing company for restaurants, caterers and gourmet food trucks.
“If they need a food truck for a fundraiser, they call me,” Duran said.
Freddy’s Food Court hires different food truck vendors every week to sell their unique creations at the fundraising event.
The kettle corn’s aroma filled the air as people entered the event.
“Our kettle corn is all fresh,” Joe Segura, Sam’s Kettle Corn employee, said. “This batch is not even an hour old.”
Once people arrived and spotted the food trucks, the aroma attracted them to try new, maybe rare, cuisine.
The savory smell of the Crazy Train Barbecue would pull guests in one direction while the loaded French fries from Meet N’ Potatoes pulled them another.
“I tried the spicy barbecue roast beef loaded fries with a fried egg on top from Meet N’ Potatoes,” Covina resident Reannon Valencia said. “It was delicious. I’m trying to get a variety of stuff, but I’m also here to support the church.”
Sam Choy’s had its own twist on Hawaiian dishes, like Sam’s Original Kalua Pork Sandwich, but the Ahi Poke seemed to be a favorite.
The Ahi Poke is a fresh sashimi-style fish, cubed and mixed with soy, sesame oil, tomatoes, onions and mild pepper flakes. Its popularity swayed hungry spectators as it sold out within the first 45 minutes of the event.
People also lined up for Stuff It Burgers’ 100 percent Angus beef burgers, along with their hot dogs piled with various condiments.
The Piggy Fries, french fries topped with cheese, pulled pork, barbecue sauce and the Stuff It Burger special sauce, were also enjoyed by family and friends throughout the evening.
Besides all the unique selections, there were two vendors selling accessories. Whether it was sunglasses or electronics, everything was sold for less than $10.
“This is only the second week,” vendor Keith Parrish said.
“The first one was great. The church is a good location. It’s prime on a nice street,” he said.
The weekly food truck event is scheduled to run through the end of May.
However, it may be extended through the rest of the summer because the reaction has been spectacular.
“We weren’t sure how it was going to be perceived by the public, but they accepted it surprisingly well,” Osborn said.
Sydney Daly-Weber can be reached at sydney.daly-weber@laverne.edu.
