Food truck debuts to ‘hungry’ crowd on campus

Northeastern’s food truck, named “Hungry Hungry Husky,” served about 200 students at lunch on Monday, its first day in business. Photo by Mary Knox Merrill/Northeastern University

Fourth-year student Rebecca Miller stood first in line on Monday for the grand opening of Northeastern’s food truck, dubbed “Hungry, Hungry Husky.” Her order was already set: a Southwest veggie taco, the hash-n-eggs fries and a whoopie pie of chocolate cookie and Oreo filling.

More than 30 students lined up behind Miller at Cabot Court prior to the food truck’s opening at 11:30 a.m., and about 200 customers were served during the entire lunch period.

To stir up excitement for the food truck, a naming contest was launched in September, followed by teasers and clues posted to Twitter and Facebook in the ensuing weeks. The buzz clearly paid off, judging by the number of entries received — more than 650 students submitted names — and by the size of the crowd that gathered on Monday.

“It’s embarrassing how much I’ve been following it,” Miller joked.

The winning name came in from seven separate contest entries, said Deb Fantasia, marketing director for Chartwells. The food truck will be called H3 for short.

H3 will set up in various locations on campus. Lunch will begin at 11:30 a.m., and the menu will remain the same Monday through Thursday, with a fresh lunch menu on Fridays.

A separate menu will be available when the food truck opens for late-night hours on Thursday, Dec. 1. Late-night service will be open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.

The menu consists of items students selected as their favorites during last spring’s “Educate Your Palate” event at International Village, which was planned in anticipation of the food truck’s launch this fall.

Students can use their Husky Dollars, Dining Dollars, credit or debit cards to purchase food. Information about the truck and menu is available online at nudining.com.

Students who lined up on Monday were encouraged by the food selection and prices.

“I really appreciate that there are clear vegetarian options. It’s good to see something new and fresh,” said Frank Marino, a fourth-year student.

Marino said he’s thrilled Northeastern jumped aboard the food truck craze with its own “Husky twist.”

“I’m excited to see that we’ve got a food truck to call our own,” Marino said.