The Mac Truck builds an army of Mac Heads everywhere they go

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           As the number of food trucks in New York City continues to grow, it has become more difficult for new entrants to stand out from the pack and garner a loyal following. It wasn’t until 2011 that they started receiving critical recognition when Zagat decided to include food trucks in their annual “New York City Restaurants” guide.  In July 2012, Dom Tesoriero and Steve Lee decided to try their hand at the business with the Mac Truck, a food truck specializing in a variety of macaroni and cheeses. The idea, which has been very well received as evidenced by their loyal following that can be seen on Facebook, Twitter and Yelp, was not their first attempt at developing a food truck.

        “Dom had the idea of doing a fresh pasta business on a truck, but after few practice runs it seemed too difficult,” Lee explained. In order for the truck to be a profitable lunch business, they need to make around $1,000 per day, or $650 after the average daily overhead of about $350 that Lee says they encounter. The idea for the Mac Truck came from Tesoriero’s dad who insisted “everyone loves mac and cheese”

        After securing a spare truck from a local Staten Island food truck business, Lee and Tesoriero brought their business up to Saratoga.  The two had made a connection with the head of food and beverage at the Saratoga Race Track while working together for a catering company in China at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the connection welcomed the Mac Truck up there for the season.

        The following fall, the Mac Truck began its run in New York City.  After a few test runs, Lee and Tesoriero realized that to make this work, they would need to focus on the Manhattan lunch business.  They rent out the kitchen and an office at the Staten Island Grand Mason’s Lodge to prepare the mac before heading out for a day in the city or any other events. With a rotation of spots to park the truck, different neighborhoods have the pleasure of the Mac Truck’s presence on different days.  Customers, or as Lee and Tesoriero prefer to call them “Mac Heads”, can follow the truck’s location from its Facebook and Twitter pages.  On Facebook, the Mac Truck has over 1,500 fans and over 2,300 followers on Twitter.

        The Mac Heads openly share their opinions and love for the mac and cheese on both of the social media accounts as well as on Yelp, where the Mac Truck has earned a 4 out of 5 star rating.  One user, Patrick K. of Bay Ridge, commented “I must say, it’s the specialized food-truck I’ve been looking for my whole life.”

        “Our business is based on Manhattan lunch business, so we choose our location by which areas have the most concentration of eaters between 11:30-2:30. From there we had to review New York’s restricted streets list and see where we can and can’t park,” Lee said.

        In a crowded city with so many parking restrictions, it can be very difficult to find a spot.  Lee noted, “We did have a favorite spot in the city up until September, when New York City shut it down. Our spot was 47th Street between Park and Madison. It was right in front of Chase Bank’s headquarters in New York. This was the hub of food trucks. People raced there every morning for the ten spots available each day.”  With the city granting around 3,000 food truck licenses overall per year and a very long waiting list to obtain one, food trucks vying for a perfect spot has turned into a daily race.

        The situation on 47th Street Lee referred to goes back to a decision by the city to ban food trucks from the popular spot because many of the food trucks parked on metered spots, which violates city law and has been increasingly enforced according to Business Insider.   Lee explained that of all the streets in New York City, roughly 75% of them prohibit food trucks from parking there and that many of the new CitiBike locations are the former spots that many trucks inhabited.  Competition between trucks also plays into the parking battle.  Lee explained that often times another truck won’t move up just an extra foot or two to make room for the Mac Truck, forcing them to look for a spot elsewhere.

        However, Lee discussed new food truck parking lots that are popping up in Manhattan’s Financial District and Brooklyn’s DUMBO area.  For a monthly fee, vendors can reserve a spot in a lot that they will be guaranteed, creating a sort of mobile food court and offering customers with easy access to the truck.

        Finding the perfect spot to setup shop for the day isn’t the only obstacle the Mac Truck faces.  Lee admitted, “With the running of a food truck business we run into tons of obstacles, from everyday traffic to extreme weather like Hurricane Sandy or snow storms, to New York meter maids who can issue between $65 and $300 daily in tickets.”  With the temperamental weather of a New York City winter, Lee said that there are days when adverse conditions make it unrealistic and very difficult to get the truck into the city in time to find a spot for the day.

        The Mac Truck has also built up a demand for private catering, including bar/bat mitzvahs, weddings, Belmont, Mayor-elect Bill DiBlasio’s rally and NYC’s Comic Con, where they served between 1,500 and 2,000 people a day, a large difference from their typical 100 to 150 daily count.

        Even though they had built up quite a loyal army of Mac Heads over the last year, Lee and Tesoriero decided to venture back to Saratoga Race Track again this summer.  Despite how risky it might seem to leave such a following behind, Lee explained, “There are certain aspects to the race track that make it different from the city.”   First, he cited the ability to have the truck parked in one location for six weeks in a row with no hassle. Also, the track could have from 20,000 to 50,000 people there a day, providing a constant, high volume flow of customers. All of the truck’s food production could be done at the track, saving time that would otherwise be wasted in traffic.

        Besides, the six-week stint at the Saratoga Race Track was very profitable, even with the cost of having to find a place to live nearby.  And without a summer in Saratoga, Lee would never have had his favorite customer experience – a family from Saratoga took a trip to midtown Manhattan just to satisfy their macaroni and cheese craving.

Mac Truck Slideshow

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