It was below freezing and the season’s first snow sat in patches around the Peterborough Basket Company parking lot.
But Bubba Franks’ green food truck was parked facing Route 202 with an “Open” flag hanging off the back. Frank Ciardelli was kneeling outside, writing a message on the side of the truck in red marker: “Hope to see you at Hornburg Brewing Co. 165 Peterborough Rd. Hancock N.H. Dec 28th and beyond.”
“Today was a struggle,” Ciardelli said, “I had some frozen hoses.”
And with the residual snow on the roads, he had trouble driving the truck up the hill near his house. It was his last week parking the truck outside of the Peterborough Basket Company, and while he was there, it was a good spot for him.
“I like serving the working people around town,” he said. “They love it.”
But the new brewery in Hancock will provide more stability, especially during the winter. For one thing, Ciardelli will be able to leave his food truck parked at the brewery, which will alleviate the stress and challenges of driving with the trailer in the snow.
Ciardelli has been catering and making barbecue for a long time, but he opened Bubba Franks’ food truck in the spring. It wasn’t his plan to own a food truck. He was initially looking for a mobile catering setup.
“I’m surprised because I had said in the past that I didn’t want to sit by the side of the road, but I actually like it,” he said. “I can do this myself. If I went to brick-and-mortar, I wouldn’t have help,” Ciardelli said, referring to the challenge restaurants are facing finding enough staff. “As long as this can support my family, I’m happy.”
His wife Becky runs the social media, website and email, and they’ve been getting a larger following, which they hope will bring people to Hancock.
Ciardelli said the community response has been very positive.
“People are excited to be able to get affordable food, comfort food,” he said.
And for Ciardelli, service to the community is a major part of his business.
“I have been doing a pay-what-you-can,” he said, and some customers have decided to pay it forward when ordering food. They pay for the next person’s order.
And, perhaps inspired by his service, Ciardelli said lots of people pay more than what he’s asking. Ciardelli worked at Roy’s Market many years ago. He thinks that’s where he learned about the importance of giving back.
Bubba Franks isn’t the only food truck that will be outside a brewery all winter. Blackfire Farm’s pizza truck can be found at Post & Beam Brewing in Peterborough almost every weekend. Last year, they served pizza at Granite Roots Brewing in Troy, but this is their first year with a much larger pizza truck setup.
When Liz Higley and her husband Doug started making pizzas, they weren’t sure what to expect. It has ended up being a huge part of their business.
Higley said the collaboration with Post & Beam has been a natural partnership.
“I think we complement each other well,” she said.
Blackfire Farm serves pizzas with ingredients grown or raised on their farm or locally sourced. They work with multiple like-minded small businesses in the area to ensure the food items they offer are ethically produced.
“We have a really vibrant local farming community,” Higley said. “It’s such a good community to lean on for products we don’t have.”
They offer goat cheese from Bending Branch Farm out of Hancock, get some pork products from Archway Farm in Keene and served breakfast sandwiches on Antrim-based Flag Leaf Bakery’s bialys on Sunday.
“Down to the fuel we use, we keep it local here,” Higley added.
Higley said they had a strong response when they started opening the food truck on Sundays, and they get a lot of regulars every week. The pizza truck stays warm inside with the 900-degree, wood-fired oven, so it works to run a food truck during the winter. It just takes a more foresight.
“It means we had to think [about winter] way back in the summer,” Higley said. This summer they grew cayenne peppers to make into sauces in anticipation for a taco takeover special they plan to have.
“Our biggest thought going into winter was we needed to make ordering more accessible for folks, and more comfortable,” she said.
They created scannable menus inside Post & Beam, so patrons at the bar can order and pay from their seats. People can also order through their website, blackfirepizza.com, then come pick the pizza up. Soon their pizza will be able to be ordered and delivered through SweenEats, a local delivery service. And for those ordering outside, Blackfire Farm has standing heat lamps coming.
With a maximum of three people working in the pizza truck at one time, Higley said, “We’re one self-contained unit. Really nimble. There’s times we have tickets up on the rail and 20 pizzas in progress.” But she said that also means “you have to be there and be on point all the time.”
They’re hoping that keeping things fresh and creative with new foods and a local menu will keep people coming out during the winter months.
“So far it’s been great,” Higley said.
Bubba Franks’ food truck will be at Hornburg Brewing when the brewery officially opens. Ciardelli will keep customers updated on Facebook about his hours. His catering website is bubbafrankscatering.com.
Blackfire Farm will be at Post and Beam every Saturday and Sunday during the winter, other than Dec. 24 and 25 and Feb. 11 and 12. They can be found on Instagram, Facebook and their website, blackfirefarmnh.com.