Since opening STUFFED! in June 2013, Alex Gould and his team have been serving up comic book-themed burgers, mac n’ cheese, and tots to San Diego. He took some time to answer our burning questions about the food truck business for SDFT.
Why did you open a food truck?
I’ve always wanted to go out on my own and be my own boss. After moving to San Diego and interviewing with a handful of different restaurant groups, I decided to take a different route and do my own thing.
What did you do before you had the food truck?
After graduating from Johnson & Wales in RI, I spent about 10 years managing restaurants. I managed restaurants in Philadelphia with the Starr Restaurant Organization.
How would you describe your food?
Elevated comfort food.
What makes your truck awesome?
Our team–we are relentless and make eating fun! We’re a comic book themed truck that serves ridiculous burgers! We only use grass fed and organic meat to ensure everything we put out is as pure as it can be!
What’s the best part about running this business and what is your biggest challenge?
Hands down, the best part about the job is seeing someone’s face after the first bite. It makes the 20 hour days all worthwhile. The biggest challenge was, and still is, educating myself to an area which I know little about, building the relationships with the people and communities, and getting my brand out there.
What would you say is your most popular item?
The BOOM Burger! Stuffed with cheese and topped with bacon, more cheese, and spicy mac & cheese.
What is something “off the wall” that you would love to put on your menu but aren’t sure people would go for?
A $99 burger with fois gras, pork belly onion jam, cave aged cheddar, a quail egg and a tall boy of PBR (to keep it real). We would keep a table, chair, and white table cloth on the truck for whoever orders it.
What’s the best reaction someone has had to your food?
A fan posted this on our Facebook page: “Tonight, I ordered the Boom!, fried Oreos, and stuffed tots. This is the best meal I have ever had. You combined all my favorite things in life (cheese, bacon, pickles, chipotle, Mac and cheese, comics, burgers) and made something more beautiful than a unicorn singing. I am almost crying right now. I love you. Seriously, how could I have ever lived so long without you? I just woke up from the food Matrix. Thank you Morpheus.”
What is the best thing you’ve EVER eaten had from a food truck/cart? Which truck was it and where?
I was in Bruges, Belgium with some friends and after a night of bar hopping and delicious beer we stumbled into a cart in the middle of the town square. We all ordered the “Bicky Burger.” Still not sure what it was. Beef? Chicken? Tofu? Don’t know, but it was out of this world. We still talk about it.
Thanks to Alex for this interview. You can find STUFFED! on Twitter, Facebook, and on the web.