CoMo has a surprisingly vibrant food truck scene for a lil’ town in the Midwest. It’s diverse too, with trucks devoted entirely to biscuits and Jamaican jerk. Here, I take a look at some area favorites:
**Mizzou Hot Dogs**
[Mizzou Hot Dogs](https://www.themaneater.com/stories/2010/3/23/mizzou-hot-dog-stand-draws-downtown-patrons/) has been in Columbia since 2008. One can find their umbrella shading the corner of Ninth and University at lunchtime, or at Fieldhouse at night.
Mizzou Hot Dogs is well known for its namesake, well, the Mizzou Hot Dog: a quarter-pound Hebrew National kosher beef hot dog, striped with chili and cheese.
James Sommerfeldt estimates that he serves more than 100 MU students per day when school is in session. He serves the most people during football season.
“I will be here late-night for the rest of my life as far as I’m concerned,” he says. “I wouldn’t leave this job for the world.”
Sommerfeldt recalled an incident when a man stole a bratwurst from his cart, and then another man pursued and tackled the brat thief, returning with the stolen brat. Sommerfeldt gave the man a free hot dog.
**Jamaican Jerk Hut**
The Jamaican Jerk Hut was born in Jefferson City.
“It grew out of a need for a few Jamaicans to get access to the food of our land,” says member of the Jerk Hut crew Rexroy Scott, who emigrated from Jamaica in 1997. “We cook it ourselves, and it became so popular that at some point we had to decide to become a real business.”
The hut’s signature dish and namesake is barbecued so consumers can put their own spin on the meal.
“We cook the meat on a grill,” Scott says. “Jerk is traditionally spicy, but we decided to put more of the spice in the sauce so you determine how spicy you want it.”
Scott says operating a business is an ever-evolving process. Currently, they own two trucks and have no plans to build a permanent establishment at the moment. “Then it would become a real job,” Scott says.
The Jerk Hut crew works as a team. Scott says there is no boss.
“‘Employees’ is too formal of a term,” he says. “No, we are like the Green Bay Packers, we are owned by the people.”
As for the hut’s signature jerk sauce, they make it with Scotch Bonnet peppers, the Caribbean pepper which is comparatively as spicy as a habañero pepper, which can be anywhere from 12 to 140 times hotter than a jalapeño.
I tried this spicy sauce on some juicy jerk wings. It was hot, but I am a fan of spice so I found it to be the perfect level of heat. The sauce is not for the faint of heart! The jerk chicken was so juicy it could stand alone without sauce.
According to Scott, there is no real secret to the refreshing Rasta Lemonade. The distinct flavor comes from the various fruit juices added to the mix.
The truck also does a take on an American favorite.
“A beef patty is our version of the hamburger,” Scott says. It is like a calzone or beef pastry: flour dough, similar to pie crust, filled with a spiced beef filling and baked until crispy.
“There are no recipes here,” he says. “We just kind of throw something together every day and hope that it comes out the same. It has not been documented.”
Columbia residents can find the Jerk Hut at many downtown events and on the weekends, sometimes in the parking lot of Tiger Tinting on Rogers and Park. The Jerk Hut crew goes to Jefferson City for some events, like the July 3 festivities. They blast reggae music wherever they go.
“We go out-of-state a couple times a year,” Scott says. “We go up to the Quad Cities to a couple of reggae themed festivals. Other than that, our gigs are mostly private caterings.”
**Ozark Mountain Biscuit Company**
Twin brothers Brent and Bryan Maness co-own the Ozark Mountain Biscuit Company and draw their culinary inspiration from their grandmother.
“There’s been a few tweaks, but really it is her recipe,” Brent says.
Brent says the food is well-received because it is made from scratch.
One can find the Biscuit Truck on the corner of Ninth and Locust Street, and at many other community events around Columbia. This year, they are once again hitting the festival trail, with plans to bestow biscuits at 13 festivals this year.
I met up with the Biscuit Truck at Wakarusa [last month](http://move.themaneater.com/stories/2015/6/19/fire-spinning-wakarusa-inside-look/#.VaBGxFxPIcI) and enjoyed a hearty ham and cheese biscuit with red pepper jelly and a pulled pork biscuit with incredible BBQ sauce. Just tasting the food answered the question as to how the Biscuit Truck has gained popularity in the three years since it began.
“Wakarusa’s a blast…we had so much fun here last year,” Brent Maness says. “And we have fun cooking food for people. This year there is a lot of a buzz going on. It is fun to see that we are growing an audience and building a brand.”
The plan is to build a physical restaurant in Columbia and expand the food trucks all around the country.
