The growing popularity of the food truck industry is visible in Toledo.
One of the most popular is Glaze’Em Gourmet Funnel Cakes which serves up the crisp, deep-fried cake that evokes feelings of summertime at the fair, year-round.
“My grandmother was from the South, so she taught us how to cook from scratch,” said truck’s owner, Rashawn McDonald, Sr. “My grandfather on my mom’s side comes from slavery, so he taught us about strong, hard work.
“That’s what created it, and it just took off,” he said as he and daughter Arrhe Carter served customers at Monroe Street and Secor Road last week.
With the success of his food truck business, McDonald developed a desire to uplift the community and strengthen the local economy.
In 2021, McDonald started the now very popular 419 Taco War, the first event of its kind in the area.
“After COVID, I felt like there was a void out here. A lot of people were scared, or just timid but also a lot of businesses were looking to come up,” McDonald said. “We were out here in parking lots just as vendors, but I wanted to bring the community together.”