LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — It was a day full of sunshine, good food, and laughter as Sunday marked the 12th consecutive year of the Main Street Food Truck Festival in Little Rock.
"We've got 65 different food trucks, we've got nearly 100 different vendors. We've got beer gardens up and down the street live music," Gabe Holmstrom, Executive Director of Downtown Little Rock Partnership described.
It was a huge event that brought in a crowd of hundreds of hungry people who spent money to help support local businesses. It had been a rough summer for food truck owners while they battled the extreme heat.
"It says a lot when we have people out there to support so I think people understand how hard you work," Artie Lovelace, owner of Spud Love.
Every dollar spent at the festival helped business owners like Lovelace take their business to the next level.
"The opportunity to be on a platform like this in front of these people. Man, you can't ask for a better a better opportunity than this," Lovelace explained.
Holmstrom said not only will Sunday's festival economically benefit the business owners but it will also put money back into the city.
"All the beverage sales, you know, that comes back to us, and then we use that money for our public art program for the murals, etc. in downtown Little Rock. Those are paid for through this event so the more we sell here, the more public art we can put out in downtown," Holmstrom said.
Holmstrom said the best part of keeping the traditions alive of having this festival every year has been seeing how far it can take the people of Little Rock.
"There's been a lot of success stories that have come out. It's always fun to see some of those trucks that have made that transition to the brick and mortar establishments every year," Holmstrom said.