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4 <br /> <br />MYTH #2: Trucks have an “unfair” advantage over restaurants because of their mobility. <br />REALITY: It is true that food trucks’ mobility allows them to serve customers in different <br />parts of a city, but any advantage that this provides is offset by the many disadvantages <br />of being a mobile operation. <br /> <br />These disadvantages include: <br /> <br /> Food trucks do not have a fixed location, which is a source of business goodwill and stability <br />for restaurants.24 After all, it is easier to build a customer base when the customer can <br />always be sure where the business is located. But food trucks have no guarantee that they <br />will be able to find a parking location that is both available and convenient for their <br />customers.25 <br /> <br /> Food trucks—unlike restaurants, which can offer climate-controlled dining rooms to their <br />customers—are completely at the mercy of the weather. If it is raining, snowing or <br />extremely hot, people will be far less inclined to stand in line at a food truck. Instead, they <br />will go to a place where they can eat inside.26 Many trucks even take a hiatus during the <br />winter because of the weather.27 Ice and snow present dangerous conditions, and spending <br />hours each day in freezing temperatures can significantly affect their most valuable asset— <br />their truck.28 <br /> <br /> Food trucks cannot offer seating and table service for their customers. <br /> <br /> Food trucks have extremely small kitchens that can hold far less inventory than restaurant <br />kitchens; this means that food trucks can sell less food and must have a smaller menu. <br />Additionally, preparing food in a small, cramped food-truck kitchen is more difficult than <br />preparing food in a larger restaurant kitchen.29 <br /> <br /> Food trucks cannot serve as many customers during the day as can an average restaurant. <br />For example, once a food truck finds a parking space, it can take 30 minutes for set-up, and <br />a similar amount of time to clean and pack up after the meal service is over.30 This means <br />that a truck that parks in a space with a two-hour parking limit only has around an hour to <br />serve customers. That’s less than half the time that a restaurant can generally allot to lunch <br />service, and less than a quarter of the time that a restaurant can generally allot to dinner <br />service.31 <br /> <br /> Food trucks, unlike restaurants, can, and often do, break down. Until repairs are made, the <br />truck cannot serve customers, employees miss out on their shifts and the food in the <br />commissary refrigerator may spoil.32 <br /> <br /> A liquor license is a big moneymaker for restaurants,33 but food trucks are usually unable to <br />obtain that license under local and state laws because they do not meet the requirement of <br />having a fixed location.34 <br />