The Native American-owned food trucks taking New Mexico by storm
Native American chefs are redefining the food truck scene while building a loyal customer base
The line outside a beige, sticker-covered food truck grows longer as participants in Albuquerque, New Mexico’s annual Prickly Pear festival break for lunch. As they wait in line, attenders try to decide between a turkey sandwich with cactus fruit syrup, a salad layered with popped quinoa and amaranth grains and a host of other options. The food truck is Manko, and its chef, Ray Naranjo, is one of many Native American chefs redefining the food truck scene in the south-west.
While Native American-owned restaurants like Owamni and Wahpepah’s Kitchen have recently garnered national attention, Native-owned food trucks are forging their own path – traveling the dusty highways and backroads of New Mexico to bring Indigenous recipes to customers.
