Ilion Food Truck Frenzy and Herkimer Downtown Chowdown: Fast Food and Fun

Food Truck Frenzy

Ilion’s Food Truck Frenzy is a busy place, with streams of people coming and going each week to sample treats from fourteen different food trucks. This simple setup means that people can find everything from fried dough to Korean specialties all within steps of each other.

Fireman's Field

Fireman’s Field is a welcoming place for the food trucks to land, with ample parking and a green lawn in the middle. Organizers put out picnic tables and trash cans and work to coordinate the crowds.

Food Truck Frenzy Stage

Firemen’s Field in Ilion doesn’t have a stage in place, so the setup has to travel. The Food Truck Frenzy arranges trucks around the perimeter of the field, with a portable stage for performers.

Healthy Food Choices

While many of the food trucks offer fried foods and other treats, some help to increase access to healthy foods that may be hard for people to find in their neighborhoods.

Nonprofit Tables

With thousands of people attending, the Food Truck Frenzy is a key opportunity for nonprofits and community groups to raise funds and share educational resources.

Food Entrepreneurs

With a low barrier to entry, food trucks are a great way for entrepreneurs like Frozen Rollie’s to perfect an offering without investing in a standalone restaurant. Frozen Rollie’s is a Utica-based truck that travels all over the region, but the owner likes Herkimer County because it makes the permitting process easier and more affordable than other places.

Herkimer Downtown Chowdown

In Herkimer, the Downtown Chowdown drops into Myers Park each Monday. It’s helped to bring new life to a quiet park and create a much-needed outdoor social opportunity during COVID-19.

Myers Park

Downtown Myers Park has the ideal setup, with a bandstand and picnic tables in place. Hundreds of homes are within walking distance, making this both a neighborhood event and a regional attraction.

Downtown Chowdown Vendors

Diverse vendors line up each week, traveling from cities and towns around the region. And the Chowdown offers a set of theme nights, helping to draw new crowds (like College Night, with Herkimer College).

Downtown Chowdown Games

The event offers a key opportunity for diverse community members to come together, relax, mix and gather. Kids play with lawn games, people set up lawn chairs and listen to music, families and friends gather. And, of course, they eat.

Photos ©Community Workshop LLC

Where: 39 Pleasant Ave, Ilion & 99 Park Place, Herkimer (in season)

What: Weekly food truck festivals offering food vendors, music, community activities and more

Herkimer and Ilion have both launched weekly food truck “rallies” or “rodeos.” These fun, energetic community events invite a dozen or more food trucks from around the region to set up shop in a park or public space. Add in live music or entertainment and a few picnic tables, and the events quickly become a draw for families, college students, visitors, and other diverse customers.

Why: Offer food and restaurant options, support growing food businesses, provide free family entertainment, draw visitors, and revitalize downtowns

Food truck rallies have a remarkable number of benefits for such a simple and inexpensive idea. They’re a great way to instantly add diverse food and entertainment options in a community without enough full-service restaurants or concert halls. They can instantly draw a crowd, attracting visitors to town on a weekly basis rather than just for a special event. They offer an opportunity for nonprofits or community groups to set up displays and reach a ready audience with information.

They are also critical tools for supporting emerging food businesses and the local economy. Many hopeful restauranteurs can’t afford to immediately rent or buy a restaurant space. Buying a food truck allows them to gain experience, test recipes and build a following before making the leap to a permanent establishment. Rallies can create opportunities for performing artists, crafters or other entrepreneurs as well. And when food truck rallies are located right on or near Main Street, they increase sales and foot traffic for other local businesses.

While food truck rallies are relatively easy to organize, it still takes work. Organizers must secure a space, market and publicize, find food trucks, coordinate volunteers, supervise and clean up.

More:

• Visit or Volunteer: Check out the Ilion Food Truck Frenzy on Wednesdays and the Herkimer Downtown Chowdown on Mondays.

• Read: check out the Times Telegram article, “Food trucks, outdoor entertainment back in Herkimer, Ilion – and people are ready to enjoy”

• Connect: Check out the New York Food Truck Association to find trucks, or find out about starting one

Get inspired:

• Start small: Interested in bringing food trucks to your town? Invite just one or two food trucks to a single event to start. If people get excited, it will be easier to grow.

• Team up: Be sure you have enough customers to make it worth it for trucks to come. It often helps to start by teaming up with an existing event, like a summer concert series or farmer’s market

• Diversify: The more attractions and activities you combine in one event, the more people will come. Rallies don’t have to be limited to food trucks — think about inviting artists or crafters, pop-up retailers, or service providers like massage therapists or Tarot readers.

• Buy a truck: Can’t find food trucks to come? There can be stiff competition these days to attract food trucks to smaller events. If you can’t find one, how about investing in a truck and inviting local chefs to use it for a night?