Some food trucks do their cooking on a grill or flat top, and some in a roaring wood-fired oven. This week’s profiled chefs cook in crock pots, a simple device that not only started a business but a love story! We continue our series of the Chefs of #CCEATS with the husband and wife team who own Crock Spot!
Don’t forget to enter to win a $15 gift card in June:
- SNAP a picture of something you got from any of the Chefs of #CCEATS we’ve profiled or any other Civic Center Eats food truck.
- POST it to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram using BOTH #CCeatsIGTD and #CCEATS. Tag us or post it to our pages: Facebook (@InGoodTasteDen), Twitter (@InGoodTasteDen), or Instagram (@InGoodTasteDenverBlog). The deadline to enter is June 30.
Meet Mandy and Steven Smith, owners of the Crock Spot gourmet food trucks:
IGTD: What kind of food does your food truck serve?
Mandy: We have a “Build a Bowl” concept inspired by a good ole fashioned Slow Cooker. We slow cook a variety of meats or stews, serve them over different grain varietals, and top with International sauces inspired from places we have traveled. It’s a 3 step process: choose a grain, choose a protein, choose a sauce… thus choosing your own adventure. We have a 95% gluten-free menu and creative and delicious vegan options as well. Due to the quick serve nature of our business, we can have guests served in about 30 seconds.
IGTD: How did you come to get into this business?
Mandy: It all started with a Slow Cooker that Steven owned in New York. He wanted to make meals that would last him all week, since he was single and working long days and nights. He started to experiment with different flavors and found he had a true knack for creating amazing things in the kitchen. He loved the idea of taking an ugly piece of meat and making it beautiful. When we reconnected, he shared the idea with me and we decided this would be a fun, unique and healthy concept to bring to Denver. We were both unemployed at the time, so we went for it.
IGTD: Are there any little-known facts about you or your food truck you’d like to share?
Steven: Mandy and I are grew up in the same neighborhood in Sandpoint, Idaho. We used to play kickball and soccer together. After high school, Mandy moved the San Francisco Bay Area and I went to New York City. We hadn’t seen each other for over 20 years, until we reconnected in our home town. We fell in love instantly and moved to Denver about three months later. We initially wanted to open a brick and mortar, but since neither one of us had background experience in the industry, we decided to ride the mobile food wave instead. I was an actor/film maker and Mandy was a life coach. We started under a 10×10 tent, serving at Farmers Markets and then expanded to a food truck the next season. We were one of the first 20 food trucks to hit the scene in 2010/2011.
IGTD: What is your favorite dish on your menu?
Mandy: We are famous for our Savory Pulled Pork, over Jasmine Fried Rice, topped with Chimichurri. However, most of the time we both prefer a “party bowl.” A little bit of a few things. Cause, you know, “we like to party!”
IGTD: What is your favorite food truck other than your own?
Steven: Colorado Pig Rig.
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