Foodies in Dubai have always been spoilt for choice. It should come as no surprise therefore that the food truck concept, popular in other parts of the world, is slowly finding its feet – or wheels – here.
As part of the ongoing Dubai Food Festival, which runs February 6 to 28, a convoy of food trucks has been taking to the streets around the city, giving residents a taste of their offerings.
One of the participating trucks is operated by New Zealand joint BurgerFuel, which has 13 locations in the UAE.
“We had our mobile truck brought over from our headquarters in New Zealand,” says Colin de Bruin, Operations Manager – Food & Beverage, AKI Group, which runs BurgerFuel restaurants in the UAE.
“Our truck was actually a racing ‘rig’ in its earlier life. We have a great, very creative guy down in New Zealand named Johnny Promo who does the custom fitting for all of BurgerFuel’s mobile units. He managed to modify some pieces of steel to fit all of the equipment and storage into our compact unit,” de Bruin says.
“Once we got the truck up to Dubai, we worked with a few local companies to make some additional modifications and ensure all health and safety requirements were met,” he adds.
There isn’t much difference between the truck and one of BurgerFuel’s more grounded kitchens, de Buin says.
“Other than being slightly more compact, the main operating elements in our truck are basically a carbon copy of those found in the kitchens of our regular stores,” he tells Truck & Fleet ME.
When asked whether food trucks are a cheaper alternative to setting up a traditional ‘bricks-and-mortar’ store, de Buin said there is no clear answer.
“There isn’t really a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer; it’s quite dependent on what you are looking for as a business owner,” he says.
“Setting up a food truck probably costs less than setting up a traditional store, but a food truck may not generate the same return. While setting up a food truck allows you to avoid the worry around fixed rental costs, there are a number of other challenges you could end up facing.”
“BurgerFuel is very fortunate to have both fixed stores and food trucks, which enables us to develop strong brand awareness while allowing us to venture to places we couldn’t otherwise set up shop,” he adds.
Commenting on BurgerFuel’s participation in the food festival, de Buin notes it “has placed a big stake in the future of the UAE’s food trucks by allowing the public to see what the food truck craze is all about. It’s a movement we are very proud and excited to be part of.”
