It's becoming a sign of warmer weather: The food trucks are back in the Loop.
Food Trucks are throughout Chicagobut they are also part of the lunchtime action at Daley Plaza and Willis Tower through October. Trucks are at Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington St., and Willis Tower, at the corner of Wacker Drive and Jackson Boulevard. Both locations will be open on selected dates 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Ken Meyer, the first deputy commissioner of the city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection ( BACP ), told Windy City Times that the trucks "are a great way for someone who wants to break into the restaurant business to test it out. This gives them an opportunity to give [things] a try."
As for the variety of foods available, BACP staffers added that there's a huge variety of foods, and there are 13 food trucks in Daley Plaza ( including Porkchop and Da Lobsta ), although they are rotated to ensure fairness, according to BACP Director of Public Information Mika Stambaugh.
( However, not all information is public. In a curious display of how politics can infiltrate something as seemingly innocuous as food trucks, Meyer wasn't allowed to divulge what his favorite food truck isalthough he went to the Da Lobsta truck after our talkand the subject of which food trucks were most popular was skipped with a terse "The city doesn't keep those numbers." )
Here are the dates:
Daley Plaza dates: April 15, 21; May 6, 11, 27; June 3,10,17,21, July 1, 6, 15, 29; Aug. 5, 12, 19, 22; Sept. 2, 9, 16, 21, 30; and Oct. 7, 14 and 26.
Willis Tower dates: April 29, May 20, June 30, July 22, Aug. 31, Sept. 23 and Oct. 21.
On Twitter, use #Chifoodtruckfest to find out which food trucks will be at the sites, and on which dates.