Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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22 UCW MAY 1-7, 2019 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Hope Mills News & Views Hope Mills adds more options to Food Truck Rodeo by EARL VAUGHAN JR. EARL VAUGHAN JR., Senior Staff Writer. COMMENTS? EarlUCWS- ports@gmail.com. 910-364-6638. The response to the monthly Food Truck Rodeos in the town of Hope Mills has been overwhelming, and that hasn't been lost on Chancer McLaughlin, the town's development and planning administrator. "We did hear the response of the community with the last event,'' said McLaughlin. The most recent Food Truck Rodeo near Town Hall drew close to 1,400 people, nearly triple the size of the regular crowd at the rodeos. "The lines were very, very long,'' McLaughlin said. In some cases, people were waiting upward of 25 to 30 minutes to be served by the six trucks that were on the scene. At the next Food Truck Rodeo, Thursday, May 2, the town will add three food trucks for a total of nine that will serve the public. In addition, instead of a DJ playing recorded music, there will be a live jazz band. The nine trucks at the next rodeo will include some that are familiar to people who have attended the event before, along with a few new ones. Following is a list and brief description of each food truck coming to the rodeo this week. R Burger is one of Cumberland County's most popular food trucks, featuring a variety of spe- cial hamburgers. Kona Ice features shaved ice treats. 32 Degrees is a unique truck specializing in two kinds of ice cream, one for people and one for their dogs. "A lot of people don't real- ize puppies can't eat regular dairy products,'' McLaughlin said. Big T's is the mobile version of the popular food stand at Hope Mills Lake. Big T's usually features items like funnel cakes, boiled peanuts and lemonade, to name a few. A Catered Affair by Chef Glenn is another Hope Mills-based truck. Chef Glenn offers items like fried green tomatoes and pineapple chicken stir-fry. Cedar Creek Fish Farm One word. Catfish. Nannie's Famous offers selections like wings and crab legs. One Nine Drive is a newcomer truck from Aberdeen. It features specialty items like smoked beef brisket, curry chicken bowls and sweet potato wedges. Rome N Round, also new to the redo and hailing from Aberdeen, features pizza. "What typically happens at these rodeos is people will hit multiple trucks,'' McLaughlin said. "If I've got to wait 30 min- utes in each line, I might not be able to get everything. The easiest way to possibly make the line go faster when you have a much larger crowd is to have more options.'' McLaughlin is mindful of balancing the need for more options with the need to avoid having too many trucks at one time so that each truck won't make too little money. McLaughlin said the town is having discussions about how to handle the potential growth of the Food Truck Rodeo. He said if necessary, it may eventually be moved to the nearby baseball fields at Municipal Park. In addition to food trucks, the town will also have vendors present to share information about local service and chari- table organizations. As always, the rodeo will include the opportu- nity to donate nonperishable food items to the ALMSHOUSE. If anyone would like to be a vendor at a future rodeo, or if there is a food truck the public would like to see come to the rodeo, McLaughlin welcomes suggestions. Reach him via email at cmclaughlin@townofhopemills.com. Meetings For details about all meetings and activities, including location where not listed, call Town Clerk Jane Starling at 910-426-4113. • Festival Committee Monday, May 6, 6 p.m., Town Hall • Mayor's Youth Leadership Committee May 6, 6 p.m., Town Hall (in con- junction with Festival Committee) • Board of Commissioners Monday, May 6, 7 p.m., Luther Board Room, Town Hall • Citizens Academy Tuesday, May 7, 6-8 p.m., Town Hall • Historic Preservation Commission Wednesday, May 8, 5-6 p.m., Parks and Recreation Building Activities • Hope Meals Food Truck Rodeo ursday, May 2, 5-8 p.m., Town Hall rear parking lot • Veterans Outreach Day Friday, May 3, 9 a.m.-1 p.m., VFW Post 10630 • Hazardous waste collection, shred event and spring litter sweep Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m., Town Hall • Good 2 Grow Farmers Market Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m., Town Hall • Hope Mills Area Kiwanis Club at Sammio's, second Tuesdays at noon and fourth Tuesdays at 6 p.m. For details, call 910-237-1240. • Hope Mills Parks and Recreation Senior programs at Parks and Recreation Building. Senior programs are for those ages 55 and up who are residents of Cumberland County. Various activities, especially Zumba classes, are scheduled Monday through Sunday throughout the day. For details on times and days, check the schedule at townofhopemills.com. You can call the recreation center at 910-426-4109 or email Kasey Ivey at kivey@townofhopemills.com. Promote yourself Email hopemills@upandcomingweekly.com. CALENDAR EVENTS