Taco trucks vs. brick-and-mortar eating establishments.
This is the battle that is continuing to brew in Lathrop.
And it’s quite a sensitive issue. At least, in one sense: politically speaking. Elected officials, after all, can’t ignore the number of people who have come forward touting their support for one over the other. There is also the reported petition that was circulated which gathered more than 600 signatures from Lathrop residents who don’t want to see the taco trucks go away.
On one hand of the debate is the taco truck operator trying to earn a buck a day to make a living. On the other side of the commercial ring is the restaurant owner who is working just as hard to earn his daily dollar.
It’s not exactly a dog-eat-dog debacle, but in the wake of a starving and weakened economy, everyone is scrambling to keep their business afloat even more so than in a healthy economy.
On the superficial side of the issue, what is going on in Lathrop appears to be sort of like David and Goliath, with the humble no-frills taco truck being pitted against the deluxe eating establishments fitted with all the aesthetic bells and whistles accompanying their customers’ dining delights.
I can’t speak personally on taste-bud comparisons. While I have had the pleasure of enjoying the culinary delights at the Taqueria Vallarta in the Louise Plaza commerce center on the corner of Louise Avenue and Harlan Road (it was an accidental discovery while I was out doing interviews and my hunger caught up with me), I have yet to taste test a burrito or taco from any of the commercial meals-on-wheels operations.
But food, for Taqueria Vallarta owner Victor Padilla, is really not the issue.
“They have good food – tacos. We also have good food,” he said during the council discussion.
The question then would boil down to individual palate preference: which of the two “good food” offerings by two business owners do the customers prefer.
And that settles the debate over the quality of food on their respective menus, as far as I’m concerned.
The more difficult issue to settle or compromise on is that of competition. Yes, competition is the essence of a free country. But as Padilla pointed out during the public hearing, “Competition is good as long as everybody is playing by the same rules.”
He claimed the mobile vendors are not playing by the same rules. His claim was supported by another business owner who also spoke at the podium.
“We have these bills that these people (truck vendors) don’t have. It took me eight to 10 months to get my business started. If I knew better, I could have bought a taco truck, or maybe two trucks” instead of opening a restaurant, he said.
They also have other expenses that mobile vendors don’t have to worry about such as worker’s compensation, taxes, and insurance coverage for their properties, Padilla said.
If you think about it, though, those are things that every business owner has to contend with. They are par for the course, so to speak.
As the now common expression says: if you build it, they will come. If you offer good food that people like, the food will sell itself. And if it’s the ambience that diners delight in, they will also make that choice themselves.
It’s not that the city has not done its job of settling this issue of taco trucks vs. brick-and-mortar business establishments. Twice since 2009, the council has had to amend its existing municipal ordinance to address the issues of mobility, length of time taco trucks can stay in one place, how far they should move their business from their last location, plus licensing and permitting fees. But despite those changes and bending backward by city officials to accommodate the complaints from the concerned parties, those amendments apparently have not been enough. The complaints continued, prompting another re-evaluation of the ordinance.
Feedback from mobile vendors and restaurants were gathered prior to the council discussion. Among the requests from the mobile vendors: extension of their time limits of doing business in one place, from three hours to “preferably 6 to 8 hours” to coincide with a regular work shift.
One feedback gathered from the restaurants indicated that taco trucks should not be allowed at all to operate within the city limits. One of the restaurant owners who addressed the council said this has to do with creating and maintaining a good image for the city.
It remains to be seen how city officials will settle this issue this time. It appears they will need the wisdom of Solomon to do it right for everybody.
This is the battle that is continuing to brew in Lathrop.
And it’s quite a sensitive issue. At least, in one sense: politically speaking. Elected officials, after all, can’t ignore the number of people who have come forward touting their support for one over the other. There is also the reported petition that was circulated which gathered more than 600 signatures from Lathrop residents who don’t want to see the taco trucks go away.
On one hand of the debate is the taco truck operator trying to earn a buck a day to make a living. On the other side of the commercial ring is the restaurant owner who is working just as hard to earn his daily dollar.
It’s not exactly a dog-eat-dog debacle, but in the wake of a starving and weakened economy, everyone is scrambling to keep their business afloat even more so than in a healthy economy.
On the superficial side of the issue, what is going on in Lathrop appears to be sort of like David and Goliath, with the humble no-frills taco truck being pitted against the deluxe eating establishments fitted with all the aesthetic bells and whistles accompanying their customers’ dining delights.
I can’t speak personally on taste-bud comparisons. While I have had the pleasure of enjoying the culinary delights at the Taqueria Vallarta in the Louise Plaza commerce center on the corner of Louise Avenue and Harlan Road (it was an accidental discovery while I was out doing interviews and my hunger caught up with me), I have yet to taste test a burrito or taco from any of the commercial meals-on-wheels operations.
But food, for Taqueria Vallarta owner Victor Padilla, is really not the issue.
“They have good food – tacos. We also have good food,” he said during the council discussion.
The question then would boil down to individual palate preference: which of the two “good food” offerings by two business owners do the customers prefer.
And that settles the debate over the quality of food on their respective menus, as far as I’m concerned.
The more difficult issue to settle or compromise on is that of competition. Yes, competition is the essence of a free country. But as Padilla pointed out during the public hearing, “Competition is good as long as everybody is playing by the same rules.”
He claimed the mobile vendors are not playing by the same rules. His claim was supported by another business owner who also spoke at the podium.
“We have these bills that these people (truck vendors) don’t have. It took me eight to 10 months to get my business started. If I knew better, I could have bought a taco truck, or maybe two trucks” instead of opening a restaurant, he said.
They also have other expenses that mobile vendors don’t have to worry about such as worker’s compensation, taxes, and insurance coverage for their properties, Padilla said.
If you think about it, though, those are things that every business owner has to contend with. They are par for the course, so to speak.
As the now common expression says: if you build it, they will come. If you offer good food that people like, the food will sell itself. And if it’s the ambience that diners delight in, they will also make that choice themselves.
It’s not that the city has not done its job of settling this issue of taco trucks vs. brick-and-mortar business establishments. Twice since 2009, the council has had to amend its existing municipal ordinance to address the issues of mobility, length of time taco trucks can stay in one place, how far they should move their business from their last location, plus licensing and permitting fees. But despite those changes and bending backward by city officials to accommodate the complaints from the concerned parties, those amendments apparently have not been enough. The complaints continued, prompting another re-evaluation of the ordinance.
Feedback from mobile vendors and restaurants were gathered prior to the council discussion. Among the requests from the mobile vendors: extension of their time limits of doing business in one place, from three hours to “preferably 6 to 8 hours” to coincide with a regular work shift.
One feedback gathered from the restaurants indicated that taco trucks should not be allowed at all to operate within the city limits. One of the restaurant owners who addressed the council said this has to do with creating and maintaining a good image for the city.
It remains to be seen how city officials will settle this issue this time. It appears they will need the wisdom of Solomon to do it right for everybody.
