Food trucks on the menu for Village parking spaces

APRIL FOOLS — The food truck trend is moving full-speed toward Longboat Key.

Five trucks are headed to the Longbeach Village beginning April 1: Jerky Jerk, Hola Taco Shack, Larry’s Chicken and Waffles, The Juicey Truth and Pitza Pi.

The food trucks will add to the Village’s reputation as a foodie paradise that’s also growing in prominence due to Moore’s Stone Crab Restaurant’s redevelopment plans and Mar Vista Dockside Restaurant & Pub’s plans to add a second-story tree house.

Jerky Jerk is a Jamaican food truck that will play reggae music and feature live music Friday and Saturday nights — transporting residents back in time to 2008, when Jamrocks spiced up nearby Whitney Beach Plaza. Owner Fred Smedegard hopes both Village residents and outsiders will enjoy the music.

“We saw the new parking spots on Broadway, and we knew this was it,” Smedegard said. “It’s clear this is a neighborhood that wants to be a restaurant destination.”

Hola Taco Shack will serve traditional Mexican food, including tacos, burritos and nachos. It will be Longboat’s new late night haven and will be open from 4:20 p.m. to 4:20 a.m.

“Longboat Key is no place to be if you get the munchies after 8 p.m.,” Manager Diego Ordonez said. “We want to change that.”

Need help finding Larry’s Chicken and Waffles? Just follow the syrupy trail down Broadway. This might not be the tidiest meal you’ve ever eaten, but it might just be the most delicious.

“Every menu item includes a waffle in it in some way, shape or form,” founder Larry Campbell said. “Our signature dish is fried chicken and gravy wrapped inside a waffle, but we’ll also offer unique, Longboat Key-shaped waffles.”

The Juicey Truth opens for early birds at 6 a.m. daily, with 14 different kinds of smoothies and also bagels, bakery treats and coffee.

“We want people to associate our truck with the smell of fruit and the distant sound of blenders,” co-owner Nancy Rienstra said. “We want to be the Village’s breakfast stop.”

Pitza Pi may be called a food truck, but it is actually a remodeled double-decker bus. Customers order and receive their pizza on the first level, and there’s seating for them to eat on the second level.

“We knew the neighborhood would  be unhappy if we set up tables all surrounding the truck, so we decided to reduce the problem by putting the tables up top,” owner Jennifer Harris said. “That way, customers can enjoy their hot, fresh pizza right here without worry of intruding on residents.”

The double-decker will turn into a party bus at night, offering tours of Longboat Key. Harris believes the bus could make the Key a popular option for bachelor and bachelorette parties.

If successful, the town will pave the way for additional food trucks later this summer by painting additional spaces.

Hopefully you made it to the end of the article, so we can say, Happy April Fools' Day! This story is not true.