Toast of the town: Brevard welcomes food trucks

It took a hearty debate and an amendment to a city ordinance, but after being given approval last fall, Brevard’s mobile food vendors are shifting into high gear for the summer season. One of the first regular stops is the Transylvania Farmers Market, where two local food trucks can be found every Saturday morning serving breakfast to hungry marketgoers.

Despite play-size galley kitchens and limited head room, Brevard locals Leigh Ann Stinson of Chameleon Catering and Mobile Food Co. and Josh McKinney of Oskar Blues Brewery’s Chubwagon offer robust and ambitious culinary treats that may make even devoted home cooks think twice about how to best start the weekend. Market patrons can set down their totes and baskets and relish the morning with a plate of creamy grits with sautéed shrimp, country ham and onions or dig into a smoked tenderloin with eggs and toast.

For those who need a pick-me-up before braving the booths or perhaps need a hangover cure (or better yet, a hair-of-the-dog dish?) the Chubwagon offers freedom toast (formerly known as French toast) slathered with the brewery’s Ten-Fiddy signature stout-flavored chocolate sauce and topped with fresh fruit. At Chameleon, the menu highlights include homemade drop buttermilk biscuits with Stinson’s delicious sausage gravy or the grilled pimento cheese sandwich, a gooey, delightful mixture of havarti, cheddar and gouda cheeses, served on sunflower oat bread.

When not out catering special events, both food truck restaurateurs make regular stops at different locations in Brevard throughout the week. The Chubwagon, which specializes in burgers and other meat dishes on its regular menu — or “high-quality bar food with a twist,” as McKinney describes his lunch and dinner fare — can be found at Oskar Blues Brewery at 342 Mountain Industrial Drive Thursday through Saturday afternoons and evenings, as well as Sunday from 2-6 p.m. For more information on Oskar Blues Brewery and the Chubwagon’s menu and scheduled stops, go to the Oskar Blues website.

Stinson, a graduate of the Cordon Bleu culinary academy in Paris, often surprises the uninitiated lunch or dinner patron with bold and inspired American and Asian fusion creations that turn heads, start online chatter and are quickly rewarding Stinson with a devoted foodie following. Devoted customers will track down Stinson even when she chooses to set up shop in such unglamorous locations as the local gas station or in front of a car body shop. To find out where the Chameleon food truck will be, check its Facebook page.

The Transylvania Farmers Market sets up its tents at the corner of Johnson and Jordan streets, every Saturday from 8 a.m.-noon throughout the summer, fall harvest and winter season until Dec. 19. The market expanded this year to include a winter market 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays December through April. Complemented by live music and weekly special events, more than 50 vendors offer a colorful palette of local produce, eggs, flowers, herbs, baked goods and other culinary treats, locally made condiments, honeys, vinegars, jams and jellies, along with farm-raised meats, trout, mushrooms and artisan crafts.