Detroit’s food scene gains traction and so do events
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EmailEntrepreneurial establishments in the city are helping to develop Detroit’s new culinary scene.
Late last year I wrote an article about the growing popularity of Food trucks and their successes too in Michigan. Two paragraphs from that article set the stage for a continuation of that theme.
“Food trucks, a pop-up business that is essentially a mobile kitchen that traditionally served blue-collar workforces between shifts, have now gained significantly in popularity across a number of demographics. According to the “Best Customers: Demographics of Consumer Demand (2008)”, young adults and parents between the ages of 25 to 34 are the largest consumers from mobile vendors and they spend on average $44 a month!
In addition, the industry is thriving in several cities, such as L.A., New York, Austin and San Francisco, where they utilize websites to track mobile food trucks’ location on any given day. According to Michigan State University Extension, these pop-up mobile kitchens entice people into the streets of downtown areas and can be used to entice customers into traditional retail/brick-and-mortar establishments. This helps to increase business during lunch hours, as well as after work. IBISWorld, Street Vendors in the U.S. (2008) claim street locations/corners have 55 percent of the food truck market whereas construction sites have just 12 percent.”
Detroit, Michigan is experiencing a similar revival that Portland once experienced with pop-up retail. Food trucks, for example, have exploded all over the city. Roaming hunger lists a number of food truck vendors in the Detroit area and their hours of operation and locations.
A recent article from Smithsonian highlights Detroit’s local food scene and some of the entrepreneurial establishments in the city that helping to develop Detroit’s new culinary scene. Not only are new and innovative restaurants opening up and attracting people somewhat unfamiliar with Detroit’s downtown, but so are a number of other activities as well. Detroit’s Slow Roll, a weekly Monday night event for cyclists, draws thousands nearly every Monday night. Traffic as such is helping transform the city to a location once feared to a tourism destination based on food, activity, culture, and history.
Michigan State University Extension offers a variety of programs to provide expertise, education and development of communities throughout the state of Michigan. When Extension professionals cross specializations and listen to input from citizens of Michigan, relevant and life changing programs will be delivered.
