Photo Note: The featured photo is from a food truck meet-up event in 2013. This is not a photo of the Food Truck Throwdown, but it’s close!
Each fall for the last seven years, the Rotary Club of Shreveport has hosted the Red River Dragon Boat Festival at Riverview Park in downtown Shreveport. The event is one of Rotary Club’s primary fundraisers, and raises money that funds college scholarship programs administered by the Rotary Club. When the Red River went buckwild earlier this Summer, it created a mess at Riverview Park that effectively shut down this year’s Red River Dragon Boat Festival, which was scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 12.
“Every year we do a Dragon Boat Race, but this year the flooding shut us down and we needed to come up with a different idea,” event organizer Scott Wysong told me.
In an effort to keep the year from being a total loss, Rotary will be hosting the first-ever Red River Dragon Boat Festival Food Truck Throwdown, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 12 in the Red River District in downtown Shreveport. You can RSVP on Facebook or share the event here. Trucks that have signed-on to participate to date include TD Express, Jester’s Catering and Wild Thang Custom Meats. There’ll also be live music by Ole Whiskey Revival. Admission to the event is free. All proceeds from food and drink will be kept by the participating food trucks. There will be a people’s choice award for the top food truck, and it’ll cost $1 to purchase votes that can be cast to determine a winner. There’ll also be a chef’s choice award determined by five celebrated local chefs, with cash prizes.
A very dear friend of mine from my college days was able to attend school thanks to one of those Rotary Club International scholarships. I can’t imagine how much it stinks for the folks at Rotary Club to have their primary annual fundraiser derailed by something as uncontrollable as this summer’s flood. I’m planning on having lunch at this event on Sept. 12, and I hope that some of you will consider doing so, as well. If you own or operate a mobile food service (food truck, trailer, farmers’ market vendor, etc.), please consider downloading the entry form below and registering to take part.
If you’re a mobile food vendor who is considering participating, organizer Scott Wysong would be glad to talk with you. He can be reached at 817-992-8138.
2015 Food Truck Throwdown Entry Form (Download link)
RSVP or share the Food Truck Throwdown Facebook event.
