Posted by: Nino Marchetti
It’s a Portland love story. A city in love with food (and renewable energy) discovers a food cart serving fine, locally sourced veggie burgers, powered by solar. That food cart, known as Off the Griddle, expands its offerings to include a little cafe, called the A.N.D. Now the foodie-preneurs behind the venture are counting on a little love on the part of their supporters to fund a Kickstarter project designed to bring the two businesses together in a single restaurant.
The food-cart-to-restaurant narrative is a common one in a city where municipal zoning laws allow for ambitious food concepts to get off the ground with a minimum in funding — so long as a food cart remains capable of moving, would-be restaurateurs can set up shop just in just about any commercial area where they’ve gained permission from the property owner. This allows entrepreneurs to test a food concept and build a following before taking the plunge on a full-blown restaurant.
