Week 5 of The Great Food Truck Race

This week on The Great Food Truck Race the four remaining teams headed to Memphis, where a series of twists and turns led to a shocking elimination. After Seabird’s exit last week, Lime Truck was somewhat shaken by nearly being sent home, but came back with a renewed energy and killer menu. Once the teams arrived they were given ingredients to create their own barbecue sauce, as well as butcher a 100 pound hog, smoke it and serve it with their newly-made barbecue sauce. Memphis BBQ veteran Jim Neely judged teams’ work and proclaimed Roxy’s the winner of the challenge. For winning, Roxy got $500 additional seed money and a head start in the elimination challenge while the other three teams had to clean up the rest of the hog to donate to a local food bank.
Each team was given $500 to start, more than in previous weeks, and Roxy’s immediately parked downtown to set up their truck. Hodge Podge parked by a restaurant they had a connection with, Lime parked outside Bluefin Restaurant where they purchased seafood for their menu, and Korilla headed to Beale Street, where for the first time in the competition they found they weren’t in a great location, with only a small line. Hodge Podge managed to open first; even beating Roxy’s which had a significant head start.

In the Speed Bump, Tyler Florence told the teams they would have to switch to an entirely vegetarian menu. Roxy’s and Lime transitioned immediately, even though Lime Truck spent a good amount of their seed money on seafood. Hodge Podge closed to visit a grocery store and rethink their menu, while Korilla got tofu delivered to them for tofu tacos. The next day a local blogger called the Chubby Vegetarian was sent to try food from each truck and lend them some publicity, and the truck he declared the winner would be safe from elimination. As the day winded down, Roxy’s had the longest consistent line so the other three trucks went to a park where a concert was being held for more business, but the crowd was not as large as expected. Hodge Podge lost electricity, and all three trucks felt they had under-performed this week.
As the elimination finally approached, Tyler Florence warned the trucks that today would not be a good day for them. First he announced that the Chubby Vegetarian announced the Lime Truck as the winner, saving them from elimination. The blogger remarked that the Lime Truck’s food was some of the best food he’d ever had. Tyler ten announced that one of the teams tried to cheat; New York’s own Korilla BBQ put some of their own money in the cash box to increase profits, violating the rules. Even though Hodge Podge had the lowest sales for the week, Korilla was eliminated for cheating.
Next week the three remaining teams head to Atlanta, Georgia. For full coverage of The Great Food Truck Race click here.