HUNTSVILLE
PROFILE FOOD TRUCK PARK
STORY BY JOSH CRISWELL PHOTOS BY MICHELLE WULFSON
Something for Everyone
A food truck court in Huntsville satisfies multiple palates
W
ith Huntsville growing
at a rapid rate, the city’s
booming food truck scene
has followed suit.
Floyd and Brittany Arnaud know
this as well as anybody.
The couple opened Arnaud’s Cajun
Kitchen four years ago, and proceeded
to grow into one of the most popular
food trucks in town. Then, late last
summer, they started their latest
venture — a food truck park located
on Montgomery Road in south
Huntsville.
“It’s grown a lot,” Brittany said.
“When we first started, we were one
of only a few food trucks in town. The
barbecue truck next to CVS (Lone
Star BBQ), they started the same time
we did, then Fat Boys was also there
(on Avenue M). There wasn’t a lot, and
there weren’t really any rules for food
trucks.”
In addition to Arnaud’s, other
offerings at the food park include:
Honey’s Coffee Bar, Chill Out Shaved
Ice, El Gordo Taqueria and Silver
Spoon Cafe.
“It’s helped having other options
there,” Brittany added. “A lot of
people said that we were going to mess
ourselves up by bringing competition,
but I think it’s helped us. A lot of
people don’t eat just our food, and
maybe a family has kids that don’t like
seafood. Now they have other options.
... It’s like going to a food court in a
mall. Everyone can get what they want
in one place.”
10
T H E T E X A S F O O D IE
“It’s helped having
other options
there.”
Two more popular food trucks
in the area teamed up for a similar
venture earlier this year, with Josh
Baker and Danny McNease of Good
News Cup and Sweet Dough opening
Market Creek — a food truck park
and more — at the intersection of
Avenue M and 15th Street.
In addition to the coffee, pastries
and gourmet pretzels that these two
businesses serve up, other trucks are
currently in the process of moving
into the space, which has movie nights
and other community events regularly.
Located in a college town, Market
Creek also has something unique to
offer students.
After transforming a house into a
lounge/study area, the area has evolved
into a favorite study spot for Sam
Houston State students. They stayed
open late during finals week, and were
packed with dozens of students each
night — with some staying until 2 a.m.
“When I moved back, there
weren’t really any local coffee shops,”
Baker said. “What I noticed from
my undergrad was that there is just
something about studying away from
campus that made it better for me.
We had Starbucks ... but I wanted
to create something else here. That’s
basically what it was born out of,
trying to find somewhere for the
students to go and study, or just relax.
Kind of like a home away from home.”