The melted Oaxaca cheese drizzling over fresh chorizo and special “avocadolicious” sauce is enough of an excuse for foodies everywhere to rush in line and grab a taste of the Latin Macho Burger, one of the best burgers in Miami. On any given night, crowds from Miami’s clubs and hubs gather to await a freshly prepared, inexpensive and delicious meal from Latin Burger.
“I was the first gourmet food truck with a Nascar feel, a cool logo and an unbelievable kitchen. I’m proud of the fact that I pioneered the whole movement in Miami,” said Jim Heins, bona fide trendsetter amd burger extraordinaire, talking up his food truck, Latin Burger and Taco.
Forget four-star restaurants and inside dining: food trucks, the new, mobile “street food,” are the hottest trend to hit South Florida’s streets and captivate the attention of hungry Miamians.
In 140 characters or less, the owners of these average-sized trucks log on to their Twitter accounts every morning and carefully dish out their location for the night. Devoted followers quickly spread the word, re-tweet and salivate over the idea of a Latin Macho Burger in their mouths.
According to Heins, founder and owner of Latin Burger (@latinburger), the allure of food trucks is their low pricing and home-style quality.
“Because of the economy, I recognized a need for $10 menus,” Heins said. “The whole thing sort of boomed immediately, but I owe a lot of acceptance to the food bloggers and social media that picked up on it.”
As with any booming business, competition arrives.
Across town, the crew at Yellow Submarine (@yellowtwiter) loads their truck and prepares for a busy night of good ol’ American grilling with a Colombian flare. Topped with provolone cheese, pineapple sauce and crushed potato chips, Yellow Submarine is home to Miami’s best hot dog: the Yellow Dog.
“The best thing about having a mobile business is that we do not have to pay rent,” said Flavio Alarcon, owner and founder of Yellow Submarine. “The challenge still lies in finding locations where we are allowed to park and building credibility that shows we are as good of a service as any restaurant.”
Famed food blogger Burger Beast (www.burgerbeast.com), a harsh but respected critic of Miami’s most popular burgers, recently hosted the 2010 Burgie Awards. The Burger Beast awarded a “Burgie” to Latin Burger and Yellow Submarine for best burger and best hot dog in Miami. For these vendors, the honor lies not in the well-earned title, but in their ability to touch the lives of every customer.
Log onto Twitter and pick a night to stalk a food truck. Patiently wait in line, but be prepared to sweat in the nighttime humidity and steam from the grill. With an open mind (and mouth), take the first bite. Savor the flavors. Realize that this may be the best thing ever eaten. And once convinced, make sure to keep on truckin’.
