Police crack down on food trucks along Wilshire Boulevard; Miracle Mile office workers are sad

Not everyone's excited about L.A.'s food truck explosion, at least not in the way that hordes of kimchi-quesadilla-eating fans are. Restaurants along the mid-Wilshire corridor weren't too pleased about the caravan of food trucks parked outside their doors and prompted a recent police crackdown.

For the last two months, Green Truck mobile catering services would park on Wilshire Boulevard along Los Angeles' Miracle Mile and serve handmade organic fare to the neighborhood's lunch crowd.

"It was wonderful," said Bobby Allen, general manger of the Culver City-based company. "We had a line of people every day."

But last week, the lines disappeared after police officers swooped in and forced Green Truck and several other mobile food vendors parked in the mid-Wilshire area to move on.

Police say the vendors didn't have proper permits. Miracle Mile lunch-timers are disappointed.

For more of Ann Simmons' story, click here.

 Photo: Stefano Paltera / For The Times

Comments

[Rogue Epidemiologist]

Food trucks are perfectly legal in LA. But like any restaurant, they are subject to health inspections, permits and licenses. Want to know if you're eating from an approved lunch truck? Look for the LA County seal with a certificate from the Vehicle Inspection Program. This is like those letter grades you see in the front windows of LA County restaurants.

The Vehicle Inspection Program at LA County Environmental Health Services is in charge of ensuring our lunch trucks sell safe food products prepared according to proper standards of hygiene.

[Patty]

Hmmm sounds like these new hip "mobile catering" trucks are going through what latino street vendors go through every day. I think these trendy new trucks should hire some "consultants" and i mean good old fashion taco truck guys - they know about watching out for the police and being shut down.. Seriously just because it's hip and cool doesn't mean you can avoid the law - live and learn.

[Gregory Tulloss]

Clearly the police have been paid off by the Fast Food Chain lobby, right? But what better city is there than LA to park a roach coach and dish out Farmer's Market glories? I am sad, I thought we had more pressing things for the LAPD to do, like, investigate MJ's multiple doctors or escort MJ's multiple funeral processions.

[Glassell Man]

I wish the trucks could come back. I work on Wilshire and personally saw employees from the pizza place across the street "strongarm" food coach people to "Move on or else".

The food from the trucks is tasty and not over priced like the places across the street at museum square.