WASHINGTON – It’s not unusual for crowds of downtown worker bees to line the sidewalks of Farragut Square in search of lunch time eats.
On Friday, some of those people lined up to support a good cause.
Share our Strength’s Taste of the Nation DC hosted its second annual “No Kid Hungry Food Truck Day.” Participating vendors — Basil Thyme, Carnivore BBQ, DC Slices, District Taco, Doug the Food Dude, Eat Wonky, Mojo Truck, TaKorean and Tasty Kabob — brought their goodies to different parts of the region in an effort to raise money to combat hunger. The trucks descended upon Farragut Square, Union Square, Crystal City and Rosslyn, and will donate 10 percent of the day’s proceeds to charity.
“I like that we’re able to use our customer streams to spread the word,” says Steven Segar, D.C. proprietor for Eat Wonky. “Every truck has a different customer base and they’re all coming together [here] and getting hit at once with the message.”
The message is an ambitious one. Share our Strength is working hard to end childhood hunger by 2015 through foodie fundraising. Friday’s food truck bonanza is just one of 50 events hosted throughout the nation and a preview of a bigger, more formal fundraiser on April 2.
Taste of the Nation 2012 will feature top chefs and restaurants, in addition to cocktails and specialty drinks. Tickets for the event can be purchased by calling 1-877-26-Taste or online. General admission tickets are $95 and VIP tickets are $150.
“We decided if anybody is going to understand the need to feed people, it’s going to resonate with the restaurant industry,” Debbie Shore, co-founder and associate director of Share our Strength, says in a promotional video.
Beck Brand, communications chair for Taste of the Nation DC, says she was inspired to join the charity after years of working in public relations for the food industry and seeing the disparity between the haves and the have-nots.
“You’re eating tasting menus for $120 a plate, meanwhile there are kids in Northeast not eating,” she says.
In 2011, Taste of the Nation DC raised $200,000, which was spread out among three local charities working to end hunger: Capital Area Food Bank, D.C. Hunger Solutions and Mary’s Center. They hope to surpass that in 2012.
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