Food Truck Spotlight

The power of food presentation and a pineapple

Chef Sam Burgess, who owns and operates the Pineappetit food truck in Tallahassee, Florida shares what he loves about running a food truck, how a photo inspired his cuisine and why presentation is as important to the food experience as the food.

Photo provided.

May 3, 2021 by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com

Food Truck: Pinéappetit
Owner: Sam Burgess
Founded: August, 2018
Location: Tallahassee, FL
How many trucks do you operate under this brand? 1

Do you operate brick-and-mortar locations under this brand as well? Yes, I have one brick-and-mortar restaurant that opened on April 22, 2021.

How did you come up with the name?
I wanted to make sure that the name emphasized our unique way of using a pineapple as a bowl. I also love a good play on words so Pineappétit was perfect for my brand.

What prompted you to start a food truck?
After graduating from FAMU I decided to open up my food truck to share my love for food with others in the community. A food truck allows you to reach different demographics in different areas. My favorite thing about what I do is being able to meet all different types of people depending on the event. When you're running a food truck you're able to attend up to three events in one day which keeps things very exciting and fast-paced.

What's on your food truck menu?
On top of our staple pineapple bowl, we also have other island-inspired dishes on our menu including pasta, Carribean patties and chicken wings. I chose this cuisine because it's something that I was never exposed to in my hometown. When I moved to Florida I fell in love with Carribean food, Jamaican food, and food from different cultures. It became my new favorite type of food and I wanted to incorporate it into my restaurant. As far as my pineapple bowl concept, I saw a picture online of a pineapple bowl with rice and shrimp in 2013. I was drawn to the photo and decided to recreate it. I uploaded my recreation on social media and had such an overwhelming positive response from my followers. The reaction to the presentation of my food made me realize that people love when food is an experience and that people eat with their eyes before they eat with their mouth. That's why I hold food presentation to a high standard at my restaurant and the pineapple bowl is the first aspect of what makes my food unique to the eye.

Do you make all the food on the truck or do you use home-based kitchen or commissary space?
I make all my food on my truck.

What's the best part of being a food truck operator?
Definitely the freedom to move. I am able to go to three different events in one day and see three different crowds of people. I love being able to attend so many different types of events and network with so many different types of people along the way.

What's the worst part of operating a food truck?
The weather is definitely a downside. It can be unpredictable at times. In the past, I have had to cancel an entire event because of unpredicted rain.

What lessons have you learned since launching the truck?
The most important thing I have learned is to remain calm. This is so important because a lot of things go wrong and don't go to plan as a food truck owner. Sometimes we might not sell enough food and sometimes we will. Sometimes a venue will cancel with short notice. Sometimes an employee will call out. If you lose your cool you will just make things worse and you won't have a clear head space to find a solution to the problem.

Is there anything you would have done differently at the start?
At the start of my business, I wish I would have not rushed into things as much. It's much more smart to have a detailed plan beforehand than to learn along the way. However, I love where my business is at now and the mistakes I have made allowed me to grow as an entrepreneur.

Any tips/advice to others thinking of launching a food truck?
To create a plan. Before you start a business there are so many questions you have to ask yourself: How are you gonna reach your customers? How will you conduct your business? What events will you attend? Where will you park your truck? How many employees will I need? Thinking about everything beforehand will help you stay calm when things don't go to plan.

Do you have any anecdotes about running a food truck — any unique interactions or special events you've been booked at?
My favorite event to attend is FAMU homecoming. It's always a large event with a great turnout but above all, it gives me the opportunity to not only interact with my regular customers but also a chance to say a quick hello to a friend or colleague of mine that I went to school with. It also gives me the chance to serve my friends' parents that are usually coming from out of town. My friends have experienced my food before but the fact that they want to bring someone who can't regularly have my food because they are out of town means a lot to me. One night at FAMU homecoming I was especially surprised to see that a friend of my mother's had traveled from Ohio to Tallahassee to support me and try my food for the first time. I've never met her, and her presence made me realize just how powerful food can be. Food brings people together who may have not known each other otherwise. The connection food makes lights a fire in me. I value customer reactions and want them to "experience" my food, and not just "eat" my food.

About Judy Mottl

Judy Mottl is editor of Retail Customer Experience and Digital Signage Today. She has decades of experience as a reporter, writer and editor covering technology and business for top media including AOL, InformationWeek, InternetNews and Food Truck Operator.

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