Part of our weekly #FoodTruckFriday campaign, this week’s featured food trucks include Divine Ice Cream and The Waffle Lab. Divine Ice Cream offers a variety of fantastic frozen treats, while The Waffle Lab specialize in gourmet Belgian-style liege waffles and unique waffle combinations. Remember to share our post on Facebook or retweet our posts to Twitter to be entered in a chance to win a FREE entrée voucher from one of the participating trucks!
“We are indeed the tastiest experiment in town!”
Think waffles are for breakfast only? Wrong! The Waffle Lab, a favorite Fort Collins food truck, has proven relentlessly that when it comes to waffle creations and combinations, the possibilities are truly endless!
“We’ve always had a love for food, a love for creativity, and a love for entrepreneurship. A food truck combines all three in an awesome package,” explained The Waffle Lab owner, Justin Brown. “Food trucks have become the leading edge of creative, grassroots food and we are excited to be on the forefront of that movement in Fort Collins.”
Although the truck’s own waffle movement has overall been a success, occasionally the weather will impact the company’s daily sales. According to Brown, if it’s too hot, he loses customers. Similarly, if it’s too cold outside customers are also not as likely to stop by.
“We’re kind of like Goldilocks…We want it just right!” joked Brown.
Yet, aside from the weather extremes, The Waffle Lab sees Fort Collins as a prime location. With so many festivals and food truck rallies available to attend, participation has allowed the truck to gain quite a local fan base.
“We love the people and the community feel. It’s hard not to walk down the street and see happy, familiar faces, and even those we don’t know are just nice. It’s a great town!” explained Brown.
Although a lover and supporter of the Fort Collins community, Brown loves to travel and try all the amazing food options across the country. In cities like Austin, Portland and San Francisco he’s noticed food truck parks adding a very cool atmosphere to the existing urban landscapes. While drawing inspiration from such areas, he’s noticed that many trucks are beginning to add picnic tables and bathrooms, easing some of the existing challenges not only to vendors, but to customers as well.
“The same thing that makes owning a food truck so much fun and interesting is also exactly what makes it so hard – our mobility,” expressed Brown. “Unlike a brick and mortar restaurant, we can’t just show up, turn on the lights and start selling. It’s never boring, but we’re okay with that!”
While mobility is currently very much a part of what The Waffle Lab’s business is, they are currently looking to expand into a brick and mortar restaurant. With their consistently high quality, outstanding food and a people-first approach to service, we’re ‘waffle’ sure that too would be a hit!
Now through the end of summer, The Waffle Lab can be found at 200 N. College Avenue every Friday through Sunday during business hours. You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter to stay in-the-know!
“If you were stranded on a deserted island, which one of your menu items would you want to have an endless amount of and why?”
“The Caper-Easy – tomatoes, mozzarella and basil on our liege waffle, topped with sea salt, olive oil and a balsamic glaze. It’s one of our most refreshing waffles so it’d clearly go well in the desert! ” – Justin Brown, owner, The Waffle Lab.
“Authenticity. Nostalgia. Selection. Reliability.”
As the saying goes: You scream. I scream. We all scream for ice cream…and we promise you’ll shout for joy after trying a tasty treat from Divine Ice Cream! An American favorite from childhood, delicious frozen ice cream treats are Divine Ice Cream’s forte. As a locally owned and operated business here in Northern Colorado since 2012, Divine truly cares for its customers and provides them with an experience that is memorable for all ages.
Owner, David Himes, takes great pride in his mobile business, helping to pave the way to an official culture of food trucks in Northern Colorado. Since Divine’s founding, the company now owns and operates three ice cream trucks and one cart with aspirations to expand across Northern Colorado to cities within Larimer, Weld and Boulder Counties.
“As a kid growing up in Iowa my Dad built me a larger than life lemonade stand that was like a small building with a sales counter, shelves and a roof. I was inspired by running my own shop and I greatly enjoyed interacting with people of all walks of life,” recalled Himes.
Offering approximately 40 Blue Bunny frozen novelties and La Michoacana fruit ice cream bars as well miscellaneous drinks and snacks, everyone can count on Divine Ice Cream for a wide variety of treats from March to October. However, “Divine Season” tends to especially draw in younger or professional members of the community.
“Our business is driven largely by children and special events related to families. Also, Northern Colorado has many wonderful companies that truly take care of their employees so we do lots of employee appreciation events,” explained Himes.
With such a diverse audience, Divine Ice Cream finds itself with lots of community business. However, even with ice cream-loving customers, Himes still recalls industry challenges including administrative tasks, daunting to any “food truck newbie”, and of course, mechanical issues. Yet, no matter the issue, Divine Ice Cream has a solution!
“Like anything else in life to succeed you must make a commitment. Don’t expect to try it out part-time, for a season, or simply see how things go. Owning a business is like being married. Determination and hard work are required to work through the challenges,” said Himes.
His truck is now beginning to distribute Blue Bunny and La Michoacana ice cream to various convenience stores, hotels, and other shops in the area. A long-term plan includes opening the first Divine Ice Cream & Coffee Shop in Fort Collins. They also just launched a promotional event for the month of August; standard event booking fees are now 50% off!
Today, Divine receives more calls and emails each year about events needing food trucks and other activities than ever before. These events can create an oasis of fun and entertainment wherever they pop up. Plus, as Himes notes, Fort Collins is one of the finest cities in the nation, with great people, climate, culture and with the majestic mountains. So really, what’s not to love? You can show your love, too by following them on Facebook or Twitter.
“If you were stranded on a deserted island, which one of your menu items would you want to have an endless amount of and why?”
“The Turtle Sundae Bar is the highest quality item on the truck. It is delicious and nutritious! Well, it does have chocolate and nuts!” – David Himes, owner, Divine Ice Cream.
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