LA’s Next Upstart Fusion Food Truck Is About as Woke as it Gets

There’s a new-ish food truck roaming around Los Angeles these days called the Woke Truck, and it’s trying to change the way consumers interact not only with their food, but with each other.

Vice’s Munchies imprint has word on the rig, which launched late last summer from partners Kashmir Hughes, Max Daniel, and Michael Powers. They describe themselves thusly:

We are three people in a polyamorous relationship who live together and own a business. We are Irish, Black, and Asian; [we] sell fusion food and teach history at the same time.

The idea, they say, is to do more than just sell food for profit — though that’s definitely an important part of the business model. They’re also invested in hiring former rehab patients and others, and they routinely do charity events around Los Angeles. The truck even serves as a standalone space for customers to come, ask questions, and learn about identity politics and historical figures. They tell Munchies:

Are we going to shy away from terms like ‘woke’ or not? The reality is we’re not, because you look back at some of these figures like the Dalai Lama or Martin Luther King, these are people who back then would’ve been considered extremely controversial.

The menu weaves from “radial” options like vegan or vegetarian-friendly burritos and tacos, plus rice bowls, burgers, and fries. Right now the trio is mostly focused on parking the Woke Truck in front of breweries across the city or along LACMA’s busy food truck row, but are hoping to expand their presence across the city. Oh, and their social media handle? @wokeastruck, naturally.

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