If you’ve driven down Tallassee Road lately, you might have noticed some new activity taking place on the sprawling site that previously housed the original Cali ‘n Tito’s (back when it was Caliente Cab), the original Rashe’s and several other restaurants (RIP Kabana, the best/only Jamaican/Indian eatery this town ever had). Winifer Rodriguez and her family are close to opening the Food Truck Station there, a restaurant that takes advantage of the site’s pluses.
Rodriguez showed me around a little while roofers hammered away. The plan is to have three food trucks, all owned by the restaurant, set up in the parking lot, to the left of the site if you’re facing it from the road. One will have Latin American food: arepas (stuffed griddled corn cakes), pepitos (sandwiches), cachapas (corn pancakes that, much like crêpes, can be savory or sweet in their fillings) and empanadas. One will have “American” food: burgers, hot dogs and fried chicken. And one will have smoked and grilled meats and vegetables: chicken, pork, parrillas and corn.
Customers can choose one or all three food trucks, then take their food to sit at one of the tables under the overhang or under an umbrella. There’s a stage for live music, and the owners plan to incorporate fun like a mechanical bull, a candy-themed playhouse for children and more, in much the same spirit as Cali ‘n Tito’s but possibly including a bar, something that was always a hassle for tenants before.
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