Melville: Four Food Studio's food truck
he Munch Box: Four Food Studio's food truck Credit: Newsday/Joan Reminick
Food trucks, all the rage in big cities, have pulled into Long Island. Four Food Studio in Melville joins North Fork Table & Inn in Southold as a serious restaurant serving grab-and-go food from a large motor vehicle.
Ben Durham, executive chef at Four, said The Munch Box, a large, white truck, was purchased at an auction by the restaurant's owners about three months ago. For awhile, it was used only to cater private functions. But this Monday, parked on the side of the restaurant, it became a prime source of sliders and salads.
Only 25¢ for 5 months
Food trucks, all the rage in big cities, have pulled into Long Island. Four Food Studio in Melville joins North Fork Table & Inn in Southold as a serious restaurant serving grab-and-go food from a large motor vehicle.
Ben Durham, executive chef at Four, said The Munch Box, a large, white truck, was purchased at an auction by the restaurant's owners about three months ago. For awhile, it was used only to cater private functions. But this Monday, parked on the side of the restaurant, it became a prime source of sliders and salads.
“It’s a quick, easy, fun thing,” said Durham, adding that people from surrounding businesses can easily pick up lunch and take it back to the office.
That’s precisely what some friends and I did, opting for a “Munch Box” assortment of a dozen sliders, accompanied by two orders of terrific hand-cut fries and two soft drinks. The price was $30. A la carte, the sliders go from $3 each (or two for $5, three for $7).
Durham was up there on the truck, taking orders and flipping burgers. Doing the same was James McDevitt, the Four Food Studio Restaurant Group’s corporate chef and operating executive chef at Two Steak & Sushi Den in New Hyde Park.
The day I went, it was too hot to eat at the tables set out on the lawn (a canopy has since been set up), so we took the food back to the office, about a minute’s drive. Tops was the “simple” slider, a burger ground at the restaurant and topped with American cheese and ketchup, served on a mini potato bun (right now, the only bread used). A Caprese slider featured a gorgeous yellow Heirloom tomato topped with mozzarella, basil and a balsamic vinaigrette. There was a pulled pork slider with crispy onions and barbecue sauce, a meatloaf slider (nice flavor, but a bit too dense), a crispy chicken slider with honey mustard and lettuce and, as the daily special, a fried fish slider topped with slaw.
The menu, Durham said, is still evolving. On my list of items to try: a “build your own” chopped salad and a lobster slider.
For now, you can call the restaurant to order ahead. In the future, said Durham, the truck will have its own phone and will also offer delivery service to surrounding offices. He added that if business is steady, the truck will keep on trucking through the winter, closing only when the weather demands.
Currently, hours are noon to 4 p.m., Monday to Friday.
Four Food Studio is at 515 Broadhollow Rd., Melville, 631- 577-4444