If we are known for anything, it's our unique prints. Unfortunately printing your own fabric is really really expensive. It's like triple the cost of buying it wholesale (at least for the levels we are currently purchasing) so when Lily and I sat down to discuss what our first print should look like we knew it couldn't be ordinary.
For whatever reason, most of the ideas we were throwing around revolved around food. We started with fruits and vegetables, but that didn't feel different enough. In fact, Olive has a pair of leggings with fruits and veggies on them already! Even though I love them, we didn't want to create something that has been done before. During our discussion, we touched on the awesome food scene that has been growing in Baltimore and then Lily mentioned food trucks. Once she said that, we both knew that was it. Bottom line - food trucks are really cool. While the food truck craze really started in LA in 2008 (does anyone else remember reading about the Korean BBQ food truck that would post his whereabouts in LA on Twitter? It was such a novel idea back them!), there is a huge food truck movement going on in the United States right now.
Food Trucks have a much lower cost of entry than a typical restaurant, which allows really innovative chefs to bring their unique cuisines to all different parts of a city or state. It also allows us lucky patrons the opportunity to taste all different types of food that may not be readily available near our home or work. With so many food trucks available, how did we narrow it down to just five?
When we began researching food trucks around Baltimore, we were pleasantly surprised to find so many more than we even knew existed. We looked for trucks of all different shapes and sizes, trucks that would compliment one another and ones that we had tried and really liked already!
As you may see on our Instastories, my family and I are big frequenters of The Charmery. It's our favorite ice cream ever and their whole vibe is just really fun. We asked them to come to my son's 2nd birthday and when they showed up with their retro ice cream cart, that really sealed the deal. Here is one of the countless visits we have taken to get our favorite! This was before Gus was even born!
The Charmery has a regular rotation of some tried and true combinations, but they are really experimental with their seasonal flavors that we can never get enough of. My personal favorite in their regular rotations is Maryland Mud, but my all time favorite was their Raspberry Entenmann's that they had last summer! We couldn't be happier to have them as one our first!
The next truck that we approached was Well Crafted Pizza. I had first learned of them from the Waverly Farmer's Market. That first visit ironically was captured in my personal instagram! Everything comes full circle!
My family LOVES pizza, especially wood fired! We have it at least once a week (though sometimes more) and so it was no question that we would want to have a pizza partner on our first print! Besides the delicious and very kid friendly food, their truck is awesome! A refurbished 949 Dodge Ram truck from a farm in Alabama with a reclaimed barnwood backsplash, white penny tile, a wood fired oven and 4 taps - it's every parent and kids dream!
Luckily for us, Well Crafted Pizza and The Charmery have both opened up additional permanent locations at the ever so cool Union Collective so we can enjoy some of our favorites things at once!
The next truck to sign on was Mexican on the Run. Baltimore's not exactly known for its Mexican scene, which is why we were elated to hear about Chef Jimmy. He's the super friendly and passionate chef behind Baltimore's only authentic Mexican Food Truck! They are quickly gaining traction and for good reason. (We are thrilled that they have expanded to a second truck and a commissary kitchen which will be a launch pad to expand their growing business.) It's not just their awesomely green truck that gets all the attention, but more importantly it's for their delicious and fresh take on our favorites. We were so excited to meet with Jimmy and collaborate!
Photo courtesy of Baltimore Snap.After months of talking on the phone and over Facebook Messenger, we were thrilled to actually meet him in person at Last Stop Hops and Shop so we could share in our enthusiasm together! Mexican on the Run is hard to miss with it's neon green truck that is rarely seen without a line of people!
The next truck that I was super excited about was Have a Ball. If you know my son at all, he LOVES meatballs! We were lucky enough to have found them at a Food Truck Festival in July. Once Gus tried their OG Meatball, I knew I had to have them on for him! He still talks about it!
Last but most certainly not least is Chiapparelli's. Chiapparelli's is basically an institution in Baltimore. It's been around since 1940 and they are known for many things, their Chip's Salad being my favorite! Baltimore wouldn't quite be the same without the Little Italy staple. If you are ever looking for good old fashioned food from your Italian grandma's kitchen, this is your place and these are your people.
This rounds out our five food trucks on our very first custom print! We hope you love it as much as we do! All of these businesses work so hard to bring us new, innovative and, most importantly, delicious family friendly food in and around Baltimore and we couldn't be more grateful. We feel so honored that they allowed us the opportunity to include their brands with ours and we hope we make them proud!!!
