Food trucks serve up big business

COEUR d’ALENE — The sun was high as customers congregated around the food trucks at Best Food Court, undeterred by the mid-July heat wave.

“I came Monday, but they were closed,” one man said as he waited to receive his order outside a food truck with a waffle logo on the side.

The promise of waffles was too good to pass up, however. He came back a few days later to try again, this time walking away with a smile, waffle order in hand.

Karissa and Jon Hubiak own and operate Brunch Box, a new addition to Best Food Court at 510 E. Best Ave. in Coeur d’Alene. Brunch Box specializes in Liège waffles, which are made from a raised dough, rather than batter, and have a crunchier, chewier texture than Brussels or American waffles.

For the couple, a food truck presented a more accessible route to opening a food-based business than a traditional restaurant.

They’re not alone in taking the plunge. The food truck industry in the U.S. has grown more than 13% per year on average between 2018 and 2023, according to industry research firm IBISWorld, with a market size of $2.2 billion last year.

That growth has reached Coeur d’Alene. In addition to Best Food Court, construction crews broke ground last month on East Sherman Food Trucks, a 10-truck food court expected to open in September. Meanwhile, the 15-truck Post Falls Pavilion does a brisk business.

Brunch Box menu offers contrasting flavors, from a sweet waffle with strawberries and whipped cream to an herb waffle with country fried steak, sausage, country gravy and perfectly-cooked scrambled eggs on the side.

“I’m very much into the sweet and the heat,” said Jon Hubiak.

He brings to Brunch Box years of restaurant experience, ranging from fine dining to other food trucks. He also cooks everything from scratch, for that comforting, “grandma’s kitchen” taste.

“He doesn’t take the shortcut,” Karissa Hubiak said.

One challenge common to food trucks? Space. Room for storage is limited, so most food truck owners make frequent shopping trips. They can’t buy in bulk, either, which increases their costs.

But the same small space also provides a unique benefit. Food truck owners are often face-to-face with customers in a way that traditional restaurants can rarely accommodate. When business owners and customers get to know each other personally, that builds community.

“I like interacting, talking, joking with customers,” said Mercedes Segismundo. “For me, personality is very important.”

Segismundo owns the Asian-fusion food truck Benzo Box and co-owns Spill the Tea, a bubble tea joint in the enclosed food court at the Post Falls Pavilion. She hails from the Philippines and moved to New York after college, where much of her family already lived.

A New Yorker at heart, Segismundo came to Idaho almost three years ago. The Gem State welcomed her with open arms.

“I love every minute of it,” she said.

Upon seeing Segismundo’s food truck, it’s clear that her personality permeates everything she does. The truck’s colorful exterior tells her story, plastered with images like stamps on a passport. She spent six months choosing the details, from the gummy bears and bowl of rice to the maneki-neko (“beckoning cat” in Japanese) that brings good luck.

“I put every part of my life on the truck,” she said. “(Customers) may not know me as a person, but by looking at my truck, they’ll know me.”

The green alien holding an ice cream cone next to the window? That’s her husband.

“He’s always been an alien to me,” she said with a laugh.

Even the food truck’s name is personal. Benzo Box comes from Segismundo’s old nickname, Benzo, which is itself derived from another nickname, Mercedes-Benz.

To keep things interesting, Benzo Box’s menu changes with the seasons. In the summer, for instance, Segismundo grills food outdoors. In the winter, it’s time for ramen and wonton soup.

The one constant: Segismundo’s food will always be a fusion of Filipino, Korean, Chinese and other cuisines, with each offering made from scratch daily. Sticking to any one cuisine would be “too boring,” said Segismundo, who loves to experiment with different flavors and styles.

“The kitchen is my playground,” she said. “I’d rather be here than my house.”

She relishes helping her customers explore “a different world of flavors.”

“I want to bring something new to Idaho,” she said. “It’s an adventure. Whether it works or not, it’s still going to be fun.”

Elsewhere in the Post Falls Pavilion, customers line up for The Fixx Smash Burgers, owned and operated by Brennan Phipps.

A smash burger is one made by smashing the ground beef onto the grill or griddle with a spatula. The method has been around for at least a century, Phipps said, but it’s become more popular in recent years.

When he opened his truck last spring, he was met with enthusiasm from customers.

“It quickly became a scramble to keep up with the volume,” he said.

Phipps traveled widely and sampled many different burgers in search of inspiration for The Fixx’s menu but kept the flavors firmly rooted in the region, as in the house-made huckleberry barbecue sauce on the “NW Barbecue” burger.

“The inspiration for the menu is the Inland Northwest,” he said.

He also sought to fill a niche in the local burger scene. Rather than picking between average but inexpensive burgers or high-quality but pricey burgers, the Fixx Smash Burgers bridges the gap, offering gourmet burgers at a price point that doesn’t break the bank.

The business has grown to five employees in its first year.

I’ve been fortunate to get some great people along the way,” Phipps said. “We take pride in what we do here.”

In the future, Phipps aims to add a second truck and expand the business’ catering services. He also hopes to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant one day. But for now, his focus is on serving up great burgers.

“We want to exceed people’s expectations,” he said.

    Mercedes Segismundo shows off her food truck, Benzo Box.
  

    Brennan Phipps aims to grow his already-bustling food truck business.