1) Cheap(er) proof of concepts. Why open a big restaurant that can cost an insane amount of money and (likely) fail? Try out that niche food option and see where it goes, if you need to pivot it's not going to bankrupt you.
2) The American Dream. You can start something with passion and little capital and become fairly successful.
3) We all win because we get great food options.
4) Low overhead if you run it yourself and/or with your family. No need to deal with employees and the accounting that comes with them.
5) Flexibility. A great Thai food cart up near Portland State (Thai Pasta) was closed for a month due to a family trip to Thailand. Try doing that with a brick-and-mortar restaurant.
I think you might have read too much into that; sounds like they were calling the food trucks themselves invading parasites.
Its just like you likened Indian/Chinese restaurants to "parasites invading"
Yes the term is racist in this case
That might be the stupidest comment I've encountered this week. You think my analogy which compared the city defending its thoroughfares against food truck blockages with a body's immune system defending its blood vessels is.... racist? You think white blood cells are racist blood cells?
HN quality of discourse (and reading comprehension) is not great nowadays.
Calling food trucks "parasites", rather than a more data-driven, less passionate, and more economically aware comment is not moving the average quality of commentary on the site in the right direction, if I may say so.
Thanks for playing the blind accusation game though. You get an A for effort.
Is it racist to notice an industry is almost entirely made up of immigrants?
Since buying/leasing a physical location is such a costly and risky venture, these trucks have been a great way for budding restaurateurs to get their feet in the door; see what works, what doesn't and perhaps eventually open a physical location. People get experience doing something they love and building a business, people get fed with interesting food that would be prohibitively expensive or otherwise difficult to discover (due to culinary fusion or other reasons), and the city gets tax revenue.
Win/Win in my book.
The vast majority of street food is run by immigrants, and it's a perfect entry point for them to get into the local economy they have chosen to make their home in.
People who were born here are smart to use the food truck as a way to test a concept before they try it in a restaurant format. Perhaps we'll see that happening more and more. There's certainly all cultures represented in Portland.
Meanwhile, we're all immigrants here unless you come from native background. I don't think the original commenter is a racist person, but his comment comparing food trucks to parasites is uncomfortable at best and shameful at worst.
Here's a test: go ask 100 food truck operators if they think some guy on a tech forum calling food trucks "parasites" is racist, and get back to us.
Most trucks cook with gas, and it would be crazy to idle their main engine. If they need power they use a portable generator.
Having just returned from a week in Portland, I can personally vouch for the amazing diversity and quality of the food truck scene and what it's done for the city and people.
Price? All over the map, from $2 tacos to $6 noodle plates. The best part is that you can literally try a different one each day.
Finally, I know that you are not a racist, but that thing you said about parasites invading was pretty fucking racist. Immigrant entrepreneurs should be encouraged, food trucks are an excellent way to do that, and we get to enjoy amazing food. Portland's restaurant scene is thriving as ever, unless it's Subway you feel sorry for. Heck, many of the best restaurants (Pok Pok) started as a food truck.