The Great Food Truck Race - General Discussion

[LexieLily]

On 4/12/2021 at 8:20 PM, xaxat said:

The  first challenge yielded a $400 bonus. Subjective assessment and I would not be surprised if Tyler "coached him up" to get the desired outcome of a TB win from the judge. The second challenge was based on sales (something BFD has been consistently the best at),but the reward is only $300. I think it's totally plausible that the producers were hoping for a split, giving TB a $100 lead before sales. The producers had enough team sales data to know that might (fingers crossed) give them a competitive race.

I don't think the judge said anything positive - or anything at all, really - about Tasty Balls' moose dish, said "Wow" about the BFD dish, Tyler bitched at him about how he was supposed to have a poker face, and everything the judge said about the Tasty Ball's dish to justify their win had the edge of "I am saying what Tyler/production told me to say."

[RealityCheck]

Brand-New Road Battle in THE GREAT FOOD TRUCK RACE: ALL-STARS Premieres Sunday June 6

Quote

 

This six-episode series is hosted by Tyler Florence and shot on location in San Francisco and the Bay area.

Kicking off at Fisherman’s Wharf with a bread bowl battle, the route then hits Napa Valley’s famed wineries for a grape-stomping challenge, the Redwoods for a foraging adventure, Ocean Beach for a seaside bites competition and a hoop shooting contest at the arena home of the Golden State Warriors, ultimately ending in Chinatown.

The trucks are:

Aloha Plate - Lanai City, Hawaii (Lanai Tabura, Adam Tabura, Shawn Felipe);
The Lime Truck - Irvine, California (Daniel Shemtob, Jesse Brockman, Mark Esposito
The Middle Feast - Los Angeles, California (Tommy Marudi, Daniella Marudi, Gabriel Villagrana)
Mystikka Masala - Santa Monica, California (Andrew Pettke, Navin Hariprasad, Doug Long)
NOLA Creations - Shreveport, Louisiana (Darrell Johnson, Aunna Johnson, Terrell Gaskin)
Seoul Sausage - Los Angeles, California (Ted Kim, Yong Kim, Han Hwang)
Waffle Love - Provo, Utah (Adam Terry, Jared Terry, Steve Terry)

 

Is this show that popular?  The Alaska series finished airing recently and FN is already going to air a new series.

[SevenCostanza]

30 minutes ago, RealityCheck said:

Brand-New Road Battle in THE GREAT FOOD TRUCK RACE: ALL-STARS Premieres Sunday June 6

Is this show that popular?  The Alaska series finished airing recently and FN is already going to air a new series.

I'll check it out, thanks for the link.  I only recognize three of the returning teams.  I'm so glad it's going to be in warm climate. 

[Starry-Eyed]

Ugh, of the three trucks I recognize, I only remember liking one of them. The other two I vaguely remember as being insufferable.

[cameron]

The waffle truck from Utah is back.  Couldn't the producers pick a better truck.

[Maya]

Wait... is there not a tater tot truck this season?? I won’t even know what show I’m watching!

[emmawoodhouse]

7 hours ago, cameron said:

The waffle truck from Utah is back.  Couldn't the producers pick a better truck.

I can't stand them, but they have an army of trucks. They must be doing something right. 

[biakbiak]

43 minutes ago, emmawoodhouse said:

I can't stand them, but they have an army of trucks. They must be doing something right. 

Or not. Mediocrity is frequently successful.

[LexieLily]

Quote

Waffle Love - Provo, Utah (Adam Terry, Jared Terry, Steve Terry)

I vaguely remember them. Wasn't that the truck that Tyler got so pissed at because they never cared about the stupid challenges with monetary prizes, flaunted not caring and/or not prioritizing them, and won most cities and got runner-up anyway?

[emmawoodhouse]

37 minutes ago, LexieLily said:

I vaguely remember them. Wasn't that the truck that Tyler got so pissed at because they never cared about the stupid challenges with monetary prizes, flaunted not caring and/or not prioritizing them, and won most cities and got runner-up anyway?

Yes, that was them. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

The Waffle Truck are all very religious, and went to services on Sundays.   They've done very well since the show too.  I think all of the All Stars have done very well also.    

[Skyfall]

On 5/25/2021 at 7:05 AM, cameron said:

The waffle truck from Utah is back.  Couldn't the producers pick a better truck.

I laughed at the press release cause it said every team had won. Well yeah, but actually no. Waffle Bros were so dominated the producers had to make Pho redo a challenge just to make it close. I live in NC and the girls own a restaurant now and is not doing the truck (as far as I can tell) so they likely passed on this season.

[Kathy]

$75 for a bread bowl?  No way would I pay that.

[Grizzly]

So glad Mistikka Marsala went home first. I found them to be incredibly annoying. Nothing against drag queens, she was pretty good. But their voices were too grating. And how did Aloha Plate find 15 people willing to pony up $75 for a bread bowl? WTF San Francisco! I know it's an expensive place to live, but this made sense to them?

[Maverick]

In Aloha's original season I remember them finding Hawaiian communities on social media (they called it the coconut telegraph or somesuch) wherever they went and they were always paying exorbitant prices.   

 Could they not get a full compliment of winning teams back?   A lot of the teams that did return have new members and it sounds like a lot of them aren't in the food truck business.  

 I thought the waffle truck everyone was talking about was the one with the guy always with his sign spinner.  I vaguely recall these guys.  And I think tonight was their MO on their season too.  They sell waffles that take about 5 minutes to churn out and have a low cost but sell them for close to the same price other trucks are selling actual meals for.  

[Aulty]

Which truck would I like to order from? The Hawaiian lads and the lime guys' food sounds delicious and fresh, the Korean sausage boys sound interesting and authentic enough to peak my interest.

It never ceases to amaze me how well the waffle or tater tots trucks do on this show considering how basic their dishes' bases are.

The Hawaiian 75$ bread bowl was quite steep, but it sounded like a sharing dish for 4 people (edit: sorry I got them mixed up with the sausage gyus, who made a dip that. The chowder still was a pretty big portion - enough for 2). I quite enjoy that they can drum up so much support from their polynesian following.

Edited June 8, 2021 by Aulty

[tinkerbell]

14 hours ago, Kathy said:

$75 for a bread bowl?  No way would I pay that.

It seems that they reach out to local communities for support, and those who are paying $75 are basically donating funds to push the team forward in the competition.  It seems grossly unfair, as they are then competing more on popularity and ability to get donations than on the value or quality of their food.  

[emmawoodhouse]

Other teams have played the social media game, including the waffle guys in the Mormon community. It's all part of the game. Tyler even acknowledged networking as he praised each team's strength.

[tinkerbell]

1 minute ago, emmawoodhouse said:

Other teams have played the social media game, including the waffle guys in the Mormon community. It's all part of the game. Tyler even acknowledged networking as he praised each team's strength.

SURE, OK, they all do it.  

I don't like it.  It takes away from the competition when they can sell grossly over-priced items to their fans/supporters, when it is essentially a donation to get them ahead in the competition.  The game is then no longer about who runs a food truck the best.  

Networking is one thing - selling a BREAD BOWL for $75 should not be allowed.  someone on here said  it feeds 4 people?  no, they all had the same size bread, it's not something you share.  People don't tend to eat soup/stew/noodles out of the same bowl.  The only thing I've seen in a bread bowl to be shared is something like spinach dip.  

[suzsqueak]

11 hours ago, Maverick said:

In Aloha's original season I remember them finding Hawaiian communities on social media (they called it the coconut telegraph or somesuch) wherever they went and they were always paying exorbitant prices.   

 Could they not get a full compliment of winning teams back?   A lot of the teams that did return have new members and it sounds like a lot of them aren't in the food truck business.  

 I thought the waffle truck everyone was talking about was the one with the guy always with his sign spinner.  I vaguely recall these guys.  And I think tonight was their MO on their season too.  They sell waffles that take about 5 minutes to churn out and have a low cost but sell them for close to the same price other trucks are selling actual meals for.  

I can only speak for The Lime Truck because they're local to me here in Orange County. After their first season Jason left to open his restaurant Playground in downtown Santa Ana, (it's walking distance from my house which is very dangerous to my waistline.) Daniel kept going with the truck and opened two brick and mortar restuarants, both fast casual called TLT Food. There's one at the Irvine Spectrum and one in Westwood near UCLA. Jason's restaurant has expanded their space several times, he has a 18 seat tasting kitchen next to it called Playground 2.0 or Trust (it depends on what they're doing that night food wise.) There was no way he'd leave everything to compete again. The restaurant is just starting to get back up and running more normally here. I will say, if you're near here, the restaurant is worth every dime and you should definitely make an effort to eat there. We're getting ready to move and it may be the thing I miss the most when we leave Orange County food-wise.

 

[emmawoodhouse]

I forgot to mention that the trucks this time around are new, spacious, and fully equipped. Compare this to the trucks they were given in Alaska that broke down in Week 1. HUGE difference. 

Edited June 7, 2021 by emmawoodhouse

[Aulty]

3 hours ago, emmawoodhouse said:

I forgot to mention that the trucks this time around are new, spacious, and fully equipped. Compare this to the trucks they were given in Alaska that broke down in Week 1. HUGE difference. 

Are you sure? After the truck discussion we had here after the Alaska season I kept an eye out during this first episode for sign of wear on the trucks. The seats and steering wheels looked incredibly worn and has severe sun damage.

Maybe they've been refitted with new kitchens but the vehicles themselves looked pretty battleworn.

[emmawoodhouse]

8 minutes ago, Aulty said:

Are you sure? After the truck discussion we had here after the Alaska season I kept an eye out during this first episode for sign of wear on the trucks. The seats and steering wheels looked incredibly worn and has severe sun damage.

Maybe they've been refitted with new kitchens but the vehicles themselves looked pretty battleworn.

I just looked at the prep areas. I failed to take note of the seats, etc. in the front. 

There is less driving this season than in Alaska, so hopefully breakdowns won't be an issue. 

[Chyromaniac]

Remind me - did Tyler say he would "personally" double the total for the breadbowl winner?  Like, with literally his own money?  If so, then I've got no real issue with Aloha Plate's price gauging - shoot, they should've charged even more if the same amount was coming out of his wallet.  Hopefully shelling out over a grand will teach him to have better defined challenge parameters next time.

That's really how I see this thing - it just wasn't a good challenge.  In other situations, at least there can be some amount of planning and technique involved - if, say, each team gets a side of salmon, they get to decide how best to portion and prepare it, and how much they want to charge per dish.  If Team A makes 12 poke bowls, and sells 10 at $10, and Team B makes 15 salmon burgers, and sells 12 for $8 - then Team A had the winning strategy.

With this, every team was locked into 15 specials - the only real variable is how much they thought they could charge.  And for Aloha, the answer was a ridiculous amount, because they felt that their community would turn out for it regardless.  Is that a realistic practice for a food truck?  No - but almost nothing on this show represents how these businesses operate in real life.  These teams are on a game show - can we really fault Aloha for playing by game show rules?

[xaxat]

41 minutes ago, Chyromaniac said:

No - but almost nothing on this show represents how these businesses operate in real life.  These teams are on a game show - can we really fault Aloha for playing by game show rules?

So true. From a real life business perspective, the only thing interesting is the concept for the truck. Everything else is reality show artifice. 

 

[meowmommy]

It occurs to me that if any of these previous winners who supposedly were on the show because they dreamed of owning a food truck had actually begun a successful food truck business with their winnings, they wouldn't have the time to be away from their businesses for a mere shot at $50K, which then has to be split three ways before they even cover their travel expenses.  This show is simply another gimmick for wannabe famewhores, just with a food truck as the venue.

Edited June 8, 2021 by meowmommy

[LittleIggy]

I’m sorry Mystika Masala went home first. I liked them.

[biakbiak]

8 hours ago, meowmommy said:

It occurs to me that if any of these previous winners who supposedly were on the show because they dreamed of owning a food truck had actually begun a successful food truck business with their winnings, they wouldn't have the time to be away from their businesses for a mere shot at $50K, which then has to be split three ways before they even cover their travel expenses.  This show is simply another gimmick for wannabe famewhores, just with a food truck as the venue.

Several of them are successful and some have multiple trucks/restaurants  and employees so them being gone for the tiny window they filmed this season, it was way shorter than previous seasons, is much more about exposure than the $50k. 

Props to them for shopping and giving credit to Gus’s Market a small local Sf chain with only 4/5 locations. Gus’s breakfast sausages are amazing!

Edited June 8, 2021 by biakbiak

[HyeChaps]

This doesn't seem as interesting as it once was.  In the beginning, it was more of Tyler doing tastings and giving advice about improving the dishes and sales techniques.

[seacliffsal]

For this "all-star" season I wonder if the participants received base salaries/incentives in addition to the potential $50,000 in order to get them to compete. It would make sense as so many of these participants have food-related businesses they had to leave (although several teams only have 1 or 2 original members so perhaps they left someone behind to oversee their businesses).

The food looks good, but the prices!!!  I think a lot of these trucks must be 'banking' on social media fans to purchase their food (especially Aloha with their $75 bowls!).

[LittleIggy]

The prices on this show have always gotten to me. If I’m paying that much for a dish, I would want to eat it inside on a real plate with real cutlery! 

[Emkat]

They should all have to sell at the same price. This ridiculous pricing which is essentially people making donations is not fair. 

[tinkerbell]

9 hours ago, HyeChaps said:

This doesn't seem as interesting as it once was.  In the beginning, it was more of Tyler doing tastings and giving advice about improving the dishes and sales techniques.

Absolutely!   And I felt we used to get a better sense of the actual items they were selling.  IT's not as interesting now.

[mlp]

I enjoyed the first episode except for the pricing issues.  Maybe that was just relief after the Alaska mess.  :)  I remembered all the trucks and liked most of them.  

I didn't dislike Mystika Masala at all but I was sick of their shtick quite quickly.  There's no way I'd choose a truck that wanted to assign me a drag name to use to pick up my food.  How silly.  So I wasn't sorry to see them go first.

I never minded the waffle guys like some people did but I hate that they all have beards now.  They looked clean cut last time which I liked.

Tommy on Middle Feast still looks cachectic.  He must have the metabolism of a hummingbird.

[Whimsy]

15 hours ago, mlp said:

I enjoyed the first episode except for the pricing issues.  Maybe that was just relief after the Alaska mess.  :)  I remembered all the trucks and liked most of them.  

This is how I felt, too.  Also, I loved that they kicked off the leg in San Francisco, where I've spent lots of time. 

[Maya]

I actually like that they are professionals with real world experience. It’s an interesting change to see something other than the usual crop of newbies who don’t know how to shop or price things and have never set foot on a food truck before. I think all the food looks better too! 

Edited June 9, 2021 by Maya

[Grizzly]

Having only watched the last 2 seasons, I was surprised at how male dominated the competition is. Where are all the women?

[Kathy]

Wow, isn't that something that we talked about the Aloha team using social media to sell their bread bowls for $75 and now all of a sudden this episode Tyler shuts down all their social media.

[Leeds]

Anyone else think Neanderthal Love would be an apt name for 2/3rds of Waffle Love?

[tinkerbell]

1 hour ago, Leeds said:

Anyone else think Neanderthal Love would be an apt name for 2/3rds of Waffle Love?

Nope. Its a cooking show, not a beauty pageant

[cameron]

Sorry to see Nola truck leave.

[LittleIggy]

How did Lime Disease or whatever their name is have sales totals twice as high as the other teams? Their prices had to have been really high.

Edited June 14, 2021 by LittleIggy

[cameron]

58 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

How did Lime Disease or whatever their name have sales totals twice as high as the other teams? Their prices had to have been really high.

That's funny.

[emmawoodhouse]

13 hours ago, tinkerbell said:

Nope. Its a cooking show, not a beauty pageant

That nasty greasy hair could get into the food. Same goes for the guy on Seoul Sausage. Pull it back! 

[jcbrown]

3 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

How did Lime Disease or whatever their name have sales totals twice as high as the other teams? Their prices had to have been really high.

 I wondered the same thing. I wish they showed us more to answer that question. I liked this episode better than the first one but would still be interested in more focus on the food and pricing and less on gimmicks.

[Chyromaniac]

On 6/9/2021 at 2:28 PM, Grizzly said:

Where are all the women?

Iirc, the waffle bros lost to the only all woman team to win this show.  Unless it’s been explained elsewhere, I have no idea why they got called back instead, when every other team was a season winner.

20 hours ago, Kathy said:

Wow, isn't that something that we talked about the Aloha team using social media to sell their bread bowls for $75 and now all of a sudden this episode Tyler shuts down all their social media.

From our end it’s an incredible coincidence, since all of this was taped months ago.  I also doubt it was done as a response to that specifically- however the show knows how important SM is for all these trucks (as someone who barely uses Twitter I have no idea how, but whatever) so it makes sense that there would be a challenge where it would be taken away.  I assume though that this is a one time thing.  Having said that, it was interesting to see how the teams performed when it was just about appealing to walk ups.

[mlp]

How exactly would Tyler (or anyone else) go about shutting down other people's social media sites?  Telling them they couldn't use it would be one thing but claiming to have shut them down is another.

I didn't like the NOLA truck the first time around so I was happy to see them go.  Their food did look good though.  I liked the waffle boys on their first season but I don't care for them now so I hope they go next.  One thing I liked about them was that they were clean cut.  Now they all look seedy.  All the trucks seem to be putting out good food so I'm factoring in other stuff I guess.  I like all the rest of the trucks.

[LexieLily]

12 minutes ago, mlp said:

How exactly would Tyler (or anyone else) go about shutting down other people's social media sites?  Telling them they couldn't use it would be one thing but claiming to have shut them down is another.

True. Tyler could order that the particular teams couldn't use their own specific social media, but what was to stop any of them from calling their friends and getting those people to use their own social media to tweet about them, sub-tweeting the business page? 

[LittleIggy]

One team was shown asking customers to use their social media to promote them. They wrote it on the takeout containers.

I believe the long-haired Seoul Sausage guy has his hair pulled back when cooking. 
Was the damage to the Waffle boys truck their fault? If not, why would the money come out of their till? Maybe I didn’t hear it right? 🤨

[johnmiller]

6 hours ago, LittleIggy said:

One team was shown asking customers to use their social media to promote them. They wrote it on the takeout containers.

I believe the long-haired Seoul Sausage guy has his hair pulled back when cooking. 
Was the damage to the Waffle boys truck their fault? If not, why would the money come out of their till? Maybe I didn’t hear it right? 🤨

They didn't edit that very well. You couldn't tell what happened. Probably because they couldn't show the other truck that hit them, or that they hit. You have to have permission from people to put them on TV.