While the world has been cooped up because of stay-at-home orders and forced to cook at home or get take-out, the food truck industry is straying from its traditional business model to give multifamily residents a tasty perk that operators are embracing. Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, gourmet food trucks have added apartment communities to their regular stops. Roaming Hunger, the nation’s largest provider of food truck catering, is working with multifamily businesses to provide daily or weekly food options for residents. The company is based in Los Angeles, the birthplace of gourmet food trucks, and represents more than 18,000 food trucks and catering businesses. Lately, Roaming Hunger has been creating custom food truck programs for apartments to provide residents a break from their kitchens and sample some local delicacies. Trucks loaded with specialty cuisines as well as American table fare are anchoring in parking lots and outside community centers just a few steps from residents’ doors. The concept, which ultimately is bringing communities closer together, is catching on. Roaming Hunger is working with 40 multifamily housing operators to host 140 events nationwide. In one week recently the company received 62 leads, mostly from Texas, Missouri, Colorado and Tennessee. “Food Truck Fridays” are fast becoming the norm, and helping rolling chefs replace revenue lost from the cancellations of festivals and community events and closed offices. “We are seeing an uptick in resident event inquiries,” said Mircea Vlaicu, a marketing specialist at Roaming Hunger. “We are building out specific programs for apartments and making sure they are a success for the residents and trucks.” Adapting to changing conditions to feed citizens The program strays from Roaming Hunger’s traditional business model of booking fees for catering-style events typically hosted by large companies or at public events. Fo...

While the world has been cooped up because of stay-at-home orders and forced to cook at home or get take-out, the food truck industry is straying from its traditional business model to give multifamily residents a tasty perk that operators are embracing. Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, gourmet food trucks have added apartment communities to their regular stops. Roaming Hunger, the nation’s largest provider of food truck catering, is working with multifamily businesses to provide daily or weekly food options for residents. The company is based in Los Angeles, the birthplace of gourmet food trucks, and represents more than 18,000 food trucks and catering businesses. Lately, Roaming Hunger has been creating custom food truck programs for apartments to provide residents a break from their kitchens and sample some local delicacies. Trucks loaded with specialty cuisines as well as American table fare are anchoring in parking lots and outside community centers just a few steps from residents’ doors. The concept, which ultimately is bringing communities closer together, is catching on. Roaming Hunger is working with 40 multifamily housing operators to host 140 events nationwide. In one week recently the company received 62 leads, mostly from Texas, Missouri, Colorado and Tennessee. “Food Truck Fridays” are fast becoming the norm, and helping rolling chefs replace revenue lost from the cancellations of festivals and community events and closed offices. “We are seeing an uptick in resident event inquiries,” said Mircea Vlaicu, a marketing specialist at Roaming Hunger. “We are building out specific programs for apartments and making sure they are a success for the residents and trucks.” Adapting to changing conditions to feed citizens The program strays from Roaming Hunger’s traditional business model of booking fees for catering-style events typically hosted by large companies or at public events. Fo...