I just returned from a walking survey of local govt sponsored "food truck tuesday". Runkeeper claims 0.71 miles in 11:18 (I walk fast) The banners/billboards and signs are back up for the spring. 70 degrees, light wind, sunny, near ideal weather. The city picnic tables are out and about 20 people eating (maybe two per table and maybe 10 occupied tables) and maybe 10 in line across all the trucks. Local time is just after lunch rush hour. 1) Korean BBQ is dead, we went from like 4 trucks at the same time last fall to Zero. Called it! Hyper narrowcasting competition killed ALL of them off simultaneously, which is too bad because I like KBBQ when I make it at home. A general lack of Asian food which is too bad, I really like that kind of stuff. 2) Prices are now a bit lower, almost as low as brick -n- mortar locally. 3) Cajun, meatballs, pitas, pizza by the slice (come on, that's the best you can do?), several southern style BBQ (the new KBBQ fad?), a burger place, a wings place, perhaps some I can't remember. I believe there was one plain ole sandwich place. 4) The themes seem to revolve around given a substance pick a container (meatballs) or given a container (pita, pizza slice dough, wings) pick a substance to put in/on it. Some anecdotes: Everything at the cajun place was $8 but don't know portion sizes which is probably why they were the only place without a line. The wings place is slightly more expensive than BW3 two blocks away. The burger place was priced about like Culvers. The meatball place sold out and was closing up which I guess is good revenue news. Generally speaking you could "eat well" for about $10. Lots of "our entree is only $8" or so in big letters but a coke or some side dish is $2. The local food selections remind me strongly of the local mall food court except somewhat fewer choices. I found the roar and smell of multiple 2 KW gas electric generators to be remarkably unappealing, if there's one thing the city .gov could do, it would be provide electrical hookups. No one sells snacks and dessert is rare. Food Truck Tuesday is currently operating at about quarter capacity. Only about half of one side of the road was occupied all in a bunch. Lots of traffic from the office buildings to the trucks and back, so actual sales are probably higher than picnic table occupation would imply.

I believe a lot of fads and prices are driven by the food network food truck series.