GREEN BAY − Are you ready to know which food trucks have the best food? We have answers.
The Green Bay Press-Gazette asked readers in an informal poll for their go-to food trucks when visiting a bar, restaurant, farmers market or food rally in the area.
In response readers recommended nearly a dozen food trucks serving the Green Bay area. Recommended food trucks are from Suamico, De Pere, Howard and even Marinette.
Many received a handful of votes, but five stood out from the rest with more than ten votes each: Taco Tones , Blue Suedes Foods , Rollin Cubanos , Tasty Traveler and The Dough Shoppe .
It was only fair to talk to the owners and chefs behind such popular food trucks and know a little bit more about them.
Taco Tones offers a mix of Native American and Mexican foods
Anthony Swett, 42, is originally from California and has Menominee Nation and Mexican roots. He has lived in Green Bay all his adult life and worked over 15 years at local restaurants. He opened his food truck, Taco Tones, in 2020 and since then, running the business has been a rollercoaster, but with success.
What sets him apart from other trucks, he said, is the fry bread he makes for sandwiches, gyros and tacos.
"The dough that we make we deep-fry it and it's got a sweeter taste to it and fluffs real nice," he said. "We use it for everything!"
The most popular items on the menu are the steak ribeye sandwich with fries and the Indian tacos, he said.
Swett's food has become a favorite in the area and many readers made that clear in their emails to the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Not just because of the menu, but also because of Swett's kindness and the connection between cultures he and his food represents.
One of the readers, Kennedy Johnson, said he loves the Indian taco but that everything on the menu is phenomenal.
"I keep coming back because of their kindness and passion for their food," he said.
Swett said Taco Tones moves all over the area but people can find out where he will be on the business' Facebook . For bookings and events he can be reached at 715-280-0022.
Blue Suede Foods serves American food with a twist
Rachelle O'Donnell-Lance, originally from Detroit, moved to Green Bay in 1991. She has over 20 years' experience as a chef and before starting Blue Suede Foods, she used to work at Curly’s Pub, the former restaurant inside the Lambeau Field Atrium.
O'Donnell-Lance said she started the food truck in 2021 with the help of her husband Scott Lance.
"We have kind of an eclectic array of American foods with my own chef-twist on them," she said.
The menu offers fish, burgers, sandwiches, fries and eggrolls. O'Donnell-Lance said the top seller is the Wisconsin rolls, eggrolls filled with shredded chicken, brats, bacon and cheese, served with a beer cheese sauce.
"Another one is The Great Scott, that's one I made with my husband," she said. "I guess he is like my food truck hero. He takes care of all the hard stuff with the equipment and everything."
The Great Scott is a sandwich loaded with beef, American cheese and beer cheese sauce on crusty grilled artisan bread.
Keeley Reiter, a reader who voted for Blue Suede Foods also mentioned her favorite item.
"I love Blue Suede’s Brussels sprouts," she said.
Another reader, Sarah C., said the owners are "super friendly and go the extra mile," she loves the garlic parmesan fries and the Detroit burger.
"My son loves the Cuban," she said in her email. "One time they made it for him even though it wasn’t on the menu for the day!"
O'Donnell-Lance said they can be found every Thursday in front of RumRunners, 715 S. Broadway, in Green Bay. For bookings and events email at Bluesuedefoods@gmail.com or call 920-510-9297.
Rollin Cubanos has Cuban flavors from the largest island in the Caribbean
Zack Cookle started Rollin Cubanos in October after several trips to Florida. He spent most of his time talking to Cuban restaurant owners and the community.
Cookle said the menu is very small but has some of the most popular items from Cuban cuisine. For example, the ropa vieja (old clothes), is made with shredded meat, usually beef, in a red tomato sauce with garlic and onions.
He said the ropa, a classic Cubano sandwich and the mojo pork with rice and beans are the most sold items. All come with fried plantain chips.
"The one place I'm not authentic ... is the bread," he said. "I can't get Cuban bread, but I use French bread."
However, the entire process for the sandwich is done the Cuban way with a little bit of mustard on the bread, mojo from pork, jam, pickles, swiss cheese and butter on the outside of the bread before it's put in a planch press, he said.
"It gets a nice crispy, toasty flavor," Cookle said.
Michael Greer said in an email that he has to eat gluten-free and it's practically impossible to find good food truck options, but he has never had a problem with Rollin Cubanos.
"The Cuban bowl with all the options of ropa vieja, mojo pork and Cuban rice is absolutely incredible," he said.
Cookle said he moves all over the Green Bay area but can often be found in front of the Consign It! store at 2605 S. Oneida St., in Ashwaubenon. For events and bookings email at info@rollincubanos.com or call 920-873-3418.
The Dough Shoppe adds sweetness to the food truck scene
Shannon Heupel previously owned a company and traveled all over the country teaching people how to decorate cookies. After her daughter Katelyn Naghtin graduated from the French Pastry School in Chicago, they went on a trip to Buffalo, New York. There they discovered an edible cookie dough shop and were inspired to start The Dough Shoppe.
Heupel said they started with a brick and mortar shop at 1166 Ashwaubenon St., but when COVID-19 hit they had to adapt to survive.
"We converted our store into a kitchen and started our food truck," she said.
What separates them from other cookie dough shops is they use pasteurized eggs to get a more homemade flavor. Because of FDA rules regarding shelf life, they had to get all the dough tested.
"It's more expensive to make it that way but it tastes better," she said.
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Heupel said their best-seller is the chocolate chip scoop. There are several other options including birthday cake, cookies and cream, peanut butter lovers and salted caramel dark chocolate. They also have gluten-free options.
Greg Naghtin voted for the Dough Shoppe because the treats are fantastic and everything is super clean and the staff is friendly. His favorite item is the brownie batter pie with whip cream and caramel sauce.
For more information or to book an events visit thedoughshoppe.com , email at info@thedoughshoppe.com or call 920-425-3223.
The Tasty Traveler isn't from Green Bay but it's still an area favorite
Husband and wife Nate and Dawn Edlbeck bought the Tasty Traveler from a person in Crivitz in April. The couple said they currently live in Marinette, but started the business while they lived in Suamico.
The Edlbeck's are both chefs and worked in some fine dining restaurants in Chicago. While living in Suamico they worked at Chives Restaurant , 1749 Riverside Drive. They usually park outside the restaurant on Tuesdays during the warmer months and go as far as De Pere for events.
"We wanted to be our own bosses and do our thing," Dawn said.
Nate said they changed the menu after they bought the business to offer burgers, chicken sandwiches and other specials. Dawn said a simple way to put it is "Wisconsin street food."
The most sold items are the smash burgers, including the Tasty Burger, which is made with a pimento cheese, butter, bacon, jam, scallions and pickles, and the Butter Burger, with American cheese, butter, Hobo remoulade and diced onions and pickles. The chicken sandwiches are also very popular.
"We try to make everything from scratch," Dawn said. "We make our own burger sauce which we are actually going to start bottling and selling it."
Carissa Strening said she appreciates their vision to elevate the food quality in the area.
"The Tasty Burger and cheese curds are worth any drive you’d have to make!," wrote in an email to the Press-Gazette.
Tara Granius also wrote in about the Tasty Burger and the grilled chicken sandwich as her favorites. She pointed out that, "They may be from Marinette area but they travel!"
For more information follow The Tasty Traveler on Facebook . For booking and other events email at TastyTravelerLLC@gmail.com or call 906-290-6928.
We couldn't leave out other food trucks that our readers mentioned
There were many others that received at least two or three votes. So here is a list with those and contact information.
Ariel Perez is a business reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach him at APerez1@gannett.com or view his Twitter profile at @Ariel_Perez85 .
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: We asked readers for their favorite food trucks. Here's what they said | Streetwise
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