Parked on the Roosevelt Concourse, Munch is the newest food truck to roll onto Auburn's campus.
Munch specializes in Asian cuisine and is bringing fresh, healthy variety to students.
"I've been twice," said Anh Duong, senior in International Business. "The first time I had the Thai Curry and the next time I had the Korean Rice Bowl. They were both really good."
Glenn Loughridge, director of dining services, said that Munch was chosen to come to Auburn's campus for many reasons.
"Thai was a variety that was missing. It was something new and different," Loughridge said. "We didn't want just another burger or hot dog stand. We're open to innovation and interesting new concepts."
Additionally, Loughridge said there had been student requests for healthier options and vegetarian options, and Munch offered both.
Munch's menu includes dishes such as Thai Cucumber Salad, Pork or Veggie Potstickers and Bahn Mi, an Asian sandwich with customer's choice of pork, chicken or tofu topped with carrot, radish, cucumber, cilantro, mayonnaise, and pate.
"It definitely had the food truck feel to it," Duong said. "But the truck tried to stay as close to the actual Asian dish as they could. I would definitely recommend it to students."
On their search for new food truck options, Loughridge and Gina Wells, Marketing director for dining services, first went to Atlanta's Food Truck Park. Yielding no results, Loughridge and Wells headed to Underground Atlanta, a well-known entertainment district in downtown Atlanta.
"There were six or seven food trucks, and we checked each of them out," Loughridge said. "It [Munch] had enough variety and they were preparing good quality food."
Wells said they particularly enjoyed a dish called Bim Bim Bap, which is a bowl of rice, topped with vegetables, specialty items, and a poached egg.
"I wouldn't have expected to like it as much as I did." Loughridge said.
Many trucks have come through campus in the past year, but Loughridge and Wells believe that Munch will be successful on campus.
"Students are the ultimate drivers of success or failure," Loughridge said. "But it also depends on freshness, portability, and the personality of the truck owners."
Loughridge said it makes sense that food trucks would be successful on college campuses, because they are very similar to urban environments, where food trucks have been very successful.
However, Loughridge also said that it can be challenging for food truck drivers to relocate to Auburn's campus.
"You have to be all in," Loughridge said. "We only have one 'home-grown' food truck [Momma Goldberg's], and everyone else has to come from somewhere else."
Loughridge said he's hoping that Munch is going to catch on with Auburn's students.
"I know James [Dimaculagan, owner of Munch] really wants to be here," Loughridge said. "And you know, variety is the spice of life, and they've brought something different."
Students can track Munch and other food trucks by downloading the dining app from the Tiger Traxx Facebook page.
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