Actions

Food Trucks staying afloat amid pandemic

Posted at 4:08 PM, Mar 25, 2020
and last updated 2020-03-26 18:34:42-04

TUCSON, Ariz. — With stay-at-home orders in some states and many others advising folks to keep their distance, people have found ways to work from home.

However, it is a different story for those who operate food trucks, such as Jozarelli’s. On one hand, the truck wants to stay as safe as possible; on the other, because it’s a food business, those on the truck are still doing what they can to sell food to the Tucson community.

"Just bringing the food to the people,” said Joe Sotomayor, the owner of Jozarelli’s Italian Street Food.

Jozarelli's has made modifications to its business since the outbreak of the coronavirus. Many previously booked events have canceled.

"We've had to do other things such as go to communities. More of like guerrilla-style cooking like we used to. We're hitting up different communities, 55+ communities, a lot of the RV parks have called us up,” said Sotomayor.

That is how Jozarelli's is trying to stay afloat. And Sotomayor said, he and his staff are taking all of the necessary precautions when it comes to serving food.

"We wear gloves, just like any other restaurant would, washing our hands. We have someone who just takes the money and that's it. We have hand sanitizer available” said Sotomayor.

Sotomayor said it’s not so much that he's seen more or less business, just that it's different. But aside from the shift in business plan, he said he's happy to have a truck to bring his food to locals.

“We're trying to bring a sense of normalcy during this time. You know, especially with families with kids, they're stuck at home. They're not sure what's going on, they're not in school” said Sotomayor.

To find out where many food trucks, like Jozarelli’s, will post up for the day, Sotomayor advised to visit that food truck's social media pages.