Food trucks arrived in Cincinnati only three years ago, but already a few are expanding into brick-and-mortar locations. While some of these changes are in hopes of transitioning into a fecund restaurant business, others are just trying to survive in a competitive market in a city with limited spots to park and do business.   

In a sense, Emily Frank is living vicariously through her food truck. C’est Cheese, pronounced “say cheese” (but it’s OK if you never get it right — few do), is a gourmet grilled cheese truck. A year in the making but only really a couple weeks old, C’est Cheese hit Cincinnati’s ground running.  

In 2010, the City of Cincinnati approved a pilot program that allowed up to 25 mobile food vendors to operate in three designated public zones: Sawyer Point, Court Street Market and at Fifth and Race streets. Since then, 11 vendors have signed up for the permits that allow them to operate within the city.  

Matt Greco, owner of Grecos downtown, deftly steered clear of all that hubbub. Serving breakfast and lunch for several months now out of his new space just west of Paul Brown Stadium, Greco combines the hip and funky menu of popular food trucks with all the comforts and amenities of a brick-and-mortar restaurant.   

A few years ago, one of the best things about visiting other cities was exploring their food truck options. Not only do they almost always have really good, cheap and fast food, but they provide a great option for talented chefs to show off their creations to the public without the massive expense of a storefront restaurant. Now, thanks mainly to the efforts of Councilmember Laure Quinlivan, we actually are seeing an explosion of food trucks here in Cincinnati.