North America's First Bicycle Food Cart Debuts in Kelowna

The launch of North America's first bike operated food cart (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)

North America’s very first bike operated food cart launched in Kelowna on Thursday as part of a social venture to help the community.

The brain child of local resident and Chef Executive Officer of Culinary Ink Gastro Ventures, Donnie Ungaro, the carts will support the Kelowna Community Food Bank, Soles4Souls, and Metro Community. The first cart will be operated by Philippe Rochon, a red seal chef who was finding it difficult to find work in Kelowna and forced to head up to camps to cook for months at a time.

Final inspection by the City of Kelowna taking place on the new food cart (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)

The first cart will be in service on Friday in front of the Metro Community on Water Street and two more carts will be launched at the Tedx Kelowna event next week. Ungaro hopes that the drivers and operators of the carts will become self-sustained individuals and will benefit from training, full time employment and in the future the potential for careers.

A sampling of the food available from the food cart (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)

The plan is to have six food carts in Kelowna by the spring of 2015, two to four carts in West Kelowna and the goal of 100 across Canada in 18 months.

The bikes are equipped with gas burners, hot water heating elements and sinks; they are fully licenced mobile kitchens. Ungaro will look to the Foodbank's clients and those that utilize Metro Community to fill the positions of operators.

Community members sampling the menu items (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)

“There’s a soup cart down in San Francisco and there’s a taco bike that tows a cooler that is ready made, but from what we know we are the first in North America doing full service street side,” said Ungaro. The food carts will have the same menu franchise wide, changing daily, and will sell two items each day for $10 each. Exact change is encouraged and debit and credit card payments will be accepted.

The fully functioning cart can cook street side (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)

The francises will sell for $1,200 dollars each and 20 per cent of all profits go back to the non-profits that have teamed up with Ungaro to support food programs for children in the community. Everything used in the carts will be biodegradable and utilize recycled material. The philosophy for the carts is simple says Ungaro,“give a man a meal –he eats for a day; teach a man to cook – he eats for a lifetime. “

The bike used to pull the cart (Photo Credit: KelownaNow.com)