Food trucks will line Main Street from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 22.
For nearly a year, Moorestown’s Economic Development Advisory Committee has discussed bringing food trucks to town. On Wednesday, Aug. 22, from 6 to 9 p.m., the trucks will finally roll onto Main Street in what the committee hopes is the first of more food truck events to come.
Vinny Napolitano, EDAC’s vice chair, said the committee is constantly looking for ways to get the community engaged with the retail district. They started discussing the idea of a food truck event last summer but didn’t have enough time to bring the event to fruition. This year, the committee started the planning and has been full steam ahead.
Napolitano said food trucks are on trend right now, and surrounding towns have held events incorporating the mobile vendors to great success. He said in their research, they found that as long as the food trucks don’t sell food that is similar to the brick and mortar businesses in the surrounding area, both the mobile vendors and surrounding businesses see an uptick in business during these events. He said if the line for one truck is too long, pedestrians will often eat at a nearby restaurant instead.
Jack Twomey, chair of EDAC, reached out to the New Jersey Food Truck Association and began identifying vendors that don’t overlap with the established businesses. The goal for the evening is to have between five and 10 food trucks along Main Street with a variety of options available to attendees.
The committee has also reached out to local businesses and invited them to participate. Maurizo’s Bistro will utilize their brick pizza oven and cater to passersby on the street, and the committee has invited businesses who are not usually open in the evening to stay open that evening.
Napolitano said they’ve also partnered with the Moorestown Community House for the event, since it happened to be hosting its Patio Party that same night. He said attendees can grab food, and then head over to the Community House lawn to enjoy their food accompanied by a DJ and a band.
The event also marks the launch of EDAC’s social media page. Napolitano said their Facebook page “Choose Moorestown” will be a hub for people interested in knowing what’s going with Moorestown businesses. He said the committee is encouraging shoppers to use the hashtag “Choose Moorestown” when they shop at the mall, Main Street or in the Lenola corridor.
The goal of the social media campaign is to encourage people to shop at smaller, mom and pop stores, Napolitano said. The Facebook page is just another tool in local merchants’ arsenal to get the word out, he said.
Napolitano said they’re hoping for a great start to their campaign on Aug. 22. He said the event is not a fundraiser but very simply an opportunity for residents to enjoy downtown Moorestown as they return from summer vacation and ready themselves for the school year ahead.
The goal is to create an atmosphere, Napolitano said.
“What’s always made Moorestown so special is that we have this small town community feeling,” Napolitano said. “It’s bringing people together at the end of the summer.”
The rain date for the event is Aug. 29. To get updates, visit www.facebook.com/ChooseMoorestown.
