Taste TV

Pedal to the metal: "The Great Food Truck Race" hits the road

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Author: 
Andrew Warren / TV Media
Tyler Florence as seen in “The Great Food Truck Race”

Tyler Florence as seen in “The Great Food Truck Race”

Food on wheels. Is there anything more American? Food trucks are a huge part of the culinary landscape in cities from coast to coast, and it's been a long time since they were just a place to stop for a quick burger and fries.

Nowadays, they're a part of many people's American Dream. Shows, such as the Food Network's "Eat St.", highlight the best in mobile eating that cities have to offer, and summertime favorite "The Great Food Truck Race" gives ordinary people their own chance to own a food truck. (And maybe one day be featured on "Eat St.?")

Well, it's summer now, and right on schedule "The Great Food Truck Race" is revving up for a fifth season. Eight new teams of hopefuls will be hitting the road starting Sunday, Aug. 17, on the Food Network, and the "steaks" are high as can be for these chefs.

It's part "Amazing Race" and part cooking competition as the competitors race their food trucks across the nation. The premiere will find them meeting host chef Tyler Florence in Santa Barbara, Calif., where they'll be tasked with coming up with a brand for their new food truck business, along with a signature dish. The race may not have even started yet, but the team with the worst dish and concept won't even get a chance to move on -- only the top seven teams will be given a food truck and be allowed to continue.

And that food truck is exactly the reason these folks are here. As they race their trucks across the country, serving up their delicious dishes to locals as they do, they'll gradually be eliminated until only one team remains and takes home the prize. The $50,000 on the line for the winning team sure is sweet, but it's not even the sweetest prize: that distinction belongs to the food truck that the winners get to keep!

It's great fun to watch, and it's amazing to see just how creative chefs can be in the tiny confines of a food truck. Challenges the cooks will be facing this season will include putting their own twists on a local favorite in Tucson, Ariz., working with their competition in Austin, Texas, and even trying to run the food trucks of their competitors!

The fifth season of "The Great Food Truck Race" puts the pedal to the metal Sunday, Aug. 17, on the Food Network.