- Jamerican Eats nearly didn’t launch due to confusing and expensive requirements.
- Owners say the process included health permits, commercial equipment, and even a buried grease trap.
- Watch the video to learn how they plan to support others, hoping to do the same.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Thomasville just got its first food truck, but behind the celebration is a story of struggle and setbacks
I'm learning what it really takes to start a mobile food business here and why some say it shouldn't be this hard.
Jakila Presha and her husband had a dream to serve Caribbean flavors out of their own food trailer.
But bringing that dream to life in Thomasville turned out to be a long, frustrating journey.
They bought their trailer back in March of last year, but city regulations made it feel almost impossible to move forward.
"It was a very tedious process. It took us a little over a year to get everything done officially. We even gave up last year when we purchased the trailer in March of last year. But the process was so long, and we were given such a hard time from the city of Townsville, that we stopped," said Presha.
Presha says just having a trailer isn't enough—you need a full prep kitchen at a physical location with commercial-grade equipment.
She and her wife were only able to make it work because her tax office building already had a grease trap buried underground—something she says no one warned them about until the end of the process.
On top of that, they still had to meet other city rules—from health and fire inspections, to how and where the truck could even operate.
But despite all that, their focus stayed on one thing: feeding their community and creating something people could enjoy.
Frances tells me she's happy to offer guidance to anyone thinking about opening a food truck.
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