The Food Truck Store

by South Florida Eats · Published April 7, 2024 · Updated April 7, 2024

The Food Truck Store: 1417 NE 26th St, Wilton Manors, FL 33305

A new restaurant called The Food Truck Store recently opened in Wilton Manors. The restaurant took over the old Quality Diner spot that had been closed for a few years. It was nice to see that after another business tried to revive the little favorite spot of diners and could not make it happen, a new concept finally took over the space and opened.

What’s in a name? Well, it would seem a lot. As I perused the various local Facebook groups, I found that many people were very confused by the restaurant’s name: The Food Truck Store. I have to admit that I was one of them as well until I googled the name and found out that this would be the newest location for a small Argentina-based chain. The Wilton Manors, FL, location is their second in the United States and South Florida.

Many people thought that the place was going to be an actual store for food trucks, selling supplies and things to help out those amazing mobile restaurants. I can see why, with a name like this, so many were confused. It really doesn’t scream that we sell hamburgers, chicken sandwiches, chicken tenders, and french fries. The other issue with the name is that they call this their Fort Lauderdale location, when in fact, they are in Wilton Manors.

Some will say, but South Florida Eats, Wilton Manors is located in Ft. Lauderdale. Yes, you are correct. It is an island city surrounded by a larger city. However, the locals do not like being referred to as Fort Lauderdale.

The Restaurant:

As I mentioned previously, The Food Truck Store opened inside the old Quality Diner. It’s a great location on 26th Street, with parking in both the front and back. When you walk in, you will be greeted by a counter in front of you to order and a few tables. There is also a counter on the left with two kiosks, but I don’t know what those are for, as no one ever seems to use them.

Once you place your order, you will be given a little pager puck that vibrates when your order is ready. You then walk up to the kitchen, which is designed to look like a food truck, but it doesn’t really look like that. It’s still a fun design, don’t get me wrong, but let’s face it, I would have put an actual food truck in there if you were going to make that your concept. At the back of the restaurant are a few more tables of various sizes.

The staff has always been friendly when I have gone. I hope that business picks up for them, as it is great to have another burger place close to my house. So far, I am usually the only one in there when I go. I do see some delivery drivers picking up orders, but overall, they need to do more to drive in business since people have no idea that The Food Truck Store is a burger restaurant.

The Food Truck Store Food:

So, let’s talk about the food from the Food Truck Store. As mentioned before, the primary focus is hamburgers, but they also offer chicken sandwiches and tenders. You can choose from 12 standard burgers and 12 specialty hamburgers. The first time I went, I chose the San Bernardino, which is made up of two 4.2 oz patties topped with American cheese, chopped onion, ketchup & mustard. I asked for crisp bacon to be added. The burger was cooked to perfection and seasoned well. It was definitely one of my favorite bites and easily on par with my other local favorite Burgers and Beers.

On the second visit, I went with the Pittsburgh. This hamburger has two 4.2-oz patties, American cheese, chopped onions, lettuce, pickles, and TFTS sauce. It is now also a favorite of mine. I have not been able to decide which of the two is truly my favorite, but I will keep trying the various burgers to see which becomes a South Florida Eats favorite. On my third visit, I went back to San Bernardino because I was hungry and couldn’t make up my mind about the great selections they offered.

I enjoyed the amazing crinkle-cut fries with their signature fry seasoning on the first two visits. These were some of the best fries I’ve ever had. I’m still partial to natural hand cut french fries, these are a close second. The only issue was the small amount they gave you as a side item. If they made these in-house, it would be very inexpensive, and they could offer you more. The price is another factor when you order fries alone. On my third trip, I was very disappointed as I craved the crinkle-cut potatoes, only to receive some subpar fry, which is hard to describe. I’ll have to ask before I order again whether that was a temporary change. If they have decided to do away with the crinkle-cut fries, then I won’t be going back.

Other Thoughts on TFTS:

I will start by saying that I have been to The Food Truck Store three times. I have a couple of observations. There is no online ordering for the Wilton Manors location yet. This is a huge miss, as their website defaults to the Miami location. You can order from Door Dash and Uber Eats, but when you live close by, you are not looking to have it delivered; you want to be able to order ahead.

The first two times, they had great crinkle-cut fries with an amazing seasoning. On my third visit, they changed the fries to some very awful thicker cut that was kind of in between a steak fry and some grooved wedge potato that tasted awful. I hate when a restaurant advertises one thing and then serves something else. And it isn’t good when a restaurant runs out of an essential ingredient like crinkle-cut fries, especially when you are a new restaurant in town.

Not to mention that The Food Truck Store did not let the customer know before ordering or at any time that there was a switch. I had even ordered extra fries since I loved them so much the first time, but I had to throw out both batches on my third trip. I hope the crinkle cut will be back the next time I try them. Another issue is that they don’t have this new location listed in social media to be able to tag that you were there on Instagram or Facebook. I’m not sure how people are supposed to spread the word.