Ottawa gets taste of new food-truck fare

Over five hundred people jammed the plaza outside Ottawa City Hall to nibble samples of food debuting next week on Ottawa city streets.

Foodies paid $10 to sample a variety of street food from vendors Wednesday over the lunch hour. The showcase event sold out in about 15 minutes.

Last fall city staffalong with a culinary panellicensed the 18 new trucks, something that has not been done for 17 years.

The new trucks and carts will add to the 44 street food vendors already licensed.

The trucks offer everything from Indian chicken kabobs and spicy Korean chicken, to Hong Kong waffles and endive leaves with quinoa salad and crispy leeks.

Soon Prak, of the food truck Chow Down, was excited for the opportunity to offer sugary egg waffles to the lunchtime crowd.

"It's a new era, a new change," she said.

Shelly Morry left her sandwich and banana at work on Wednesday, in favour of the spicy Korean chicken at city hall.

"We definitely need this for sure, we need to start eating healthy." she said.

Mayor Jim Watson apologized to those who didn't get to the sampling because the tickets sold outso fast.

"So those of you who have come down I apologize that we didn't have enough food for everyone, but there are food stalls near the rink of dreams at the tulip festival," he said.

The first of the new food will start rolling out on May 15 on Ottawa streets.