Chase down these food trucks

Coos Bay is now home to a food truck court located on Front Street, close to Coos History Museum. Known as Front Street Food Trucks, the food truck court includes a full service bar, picnic tables, and a place to dine that is out of the elements, complete with large-screen televisions. Construction began as early as September, but food trucks did not start moving in until October. It now regularly houses approximately five food trucks.

The owner of SweetHeart Waffle Truck, Amiee Blevins, has enjoyed the journey of transitioning from being in the back of the kitchen to being face to face with the public.   

“I used to own a bakery before this,” said Blevins. “As much as I loved it, the food truck is more fun because I’m mobile and it has more personality. When I had the bakery, I was in the back and now that I have the food truck; I am able to be more direct with the customers.“

The process of switching from a brick-and-mortar establishment to a mobile truck was a ride. Not only are there the obvious cosmetic changes, but there are a lot of other business requirements to accompany the alternate business.

“It took us more than six months to complete this project,” Blevins stated. “In fees and loans in this county, I paid more for this than I did for my brick and mortar. This truck cost us quite a bit of money, but we did it right. We got it professionally done in Portland. We got our custom equipment so in this way we aren’t buying extra tools and trying to learn how to do it.“

The SweetHeart Waffle menu focuses mostly on soft-serve ice cream desserts and, of course, waffles. One of their specialties is chicken and waffles, or they even have a waffle banana split. Creating items that people will enjoy is what Blevins loves to do, and she wakes up every morning and strives to meet her customers’ needs.   

“No matter how good you are, it is impossible to make 100% of the people happy,” said Blevins. “In order to maintain the satisfaction, you need to have thick skin. Messing up is a part of life, but you just need to fix what mistake you made and keep going.“

One of the most popular items, known as the “Taiyaki Waffle” is one of Belvins’ personal favorites as well. She used to make waffles every sunday for her son and when she was looking for a waffle maker, she stumbled upon a fished shaped waffle one which happened to be the famous one she uses today. 

“The fish is actually really rare in Japan, it is given for good fortune and it fits since we live on the coast as well,” said Blevins.

Since Blevins’ has been in business for 3 kitchens, she plans on continuing to get up every morning and put in 100% to keep on serving our community.

Altogether, Coos Bay has many food choices to choose from. Right in the center of this jumble of cuisine are the Front Street Food Trucks, where one may find several food options to choose from.