Picture yourself spotting a delicious dish of shrimp bruschetta on a menu. You see the ingredients: poached shrimp, fresh corn, red potato, chimichurri and manchego. Your taste buds are already watering, so you place your order.
You’re handed a number to place on your table for the server to find you when your food is ready. A few minutes pass, and your shrimp bruschetta is brought to you on a palm leaf, eco-friendly plate.
But you’re not at a restaurant. You’re probably at a brewery or winery and Trè Locally Sourced is parked on the side working hard taking orders. Yes, that’s right. You just ordered one of the freshest and finest dishes from a local food truck.
Trè isn’t like any other truck around, its owners and chefs say. Their commitment to finding local ingredients and creating fresh, upscale dishes is easily witnessed in their final products.
Owners Tim Howells and his wife, Dana Gould-Howells, along with business partner Brad Beckman, officially launched Trè Locally Sourced the first week of May.
Patrons can expect a more upscale, fine-dining experience with a twist on classic dishes when they come up to Tre’s window. The owners understand the importance of customer service and offer more of a restaurant feel, where servers bring your food out to you.
Howells has been cooking for more than 15 years at various kitchens and restaurants in and out of the Lehigh Valley. He opened the Gastropub at Saucony Creek Brewing in Kutztown a few years back, where he reached out to his friend Beckman and the two became partners in the kitchen.
The thought of a food truck was on Howells’ mind for a few years, he said, but the market wasn’t prime for one at the time. But recently with the influx of breweries, Howells felt his dream was actually going to be possible. So he and Beckman respectfully left their jobs at the Gastropub in the spring, leaving it in good hands to continue their new venture.
Howells and Beckman designed the inside of Trè’s food truck, from refrigeration to propane. It took about 12 months to have it built from the ground up. However, it gave them enough time to spread the word and they were booked before the food truck even arrived. Although the space might be small on the inside, Howells said he’s worked in kitchens of a similar size, so it poses no problem.
Trè’s food items are based on Howells’ and Beckman’s previous experiences in the kitchen. The two like to change the interpretation of traditional fare by spicing it up with unusual ingredients. A different menu is presented at almost every venue they book.
For example, this week’s menu included a cheese plate made with Valley Milkhouse cheese out of Oley, PA. The offerings were blue bell and lady slipper cheese, strawberry fig jam that was just the right amount of sweetness, beer mustard and a breadbox crostini.
Another menu item was the tuna nachos, which included marinated tuna with spicy mayo, cucumber shavings and plantain chips. The delicate taste of the tuna paired with the crunchiness of the chip and the zest of the mayo was the perfect flavor combination. Each ingredient flowed together seamlessly and left me enjoying a complete, balanced taste.
One bite out of any dish from Trè Locally Sourced and you immediately taste its freshness. The owners pride themselves on using ingredients that are—just as their title states—locally sourced.
“It’s not just in the flavor, but in bringing in the awareness of local businesses and their foods, which affects the community in a good way,” Beckman said.
Trè can be found at local wineries and breweries across the Lehigh Valley, from Funk Brewing in Emmaus to Lost Tavern Brewing in Hellertown. Usually the team sets up for at least four hours to provide patrons with their creations. The food is brought on and off the truck daily and Howells uses his scarce days off to prep food for the next menu.
Local ingredients come from places such as Blue Market Bread Co. in Kutztown and Stryker Farms in Saylorsburg along with many more. Trè also pairs up with local businesses and helps them by promoting some of their products, like a type of dessert.
With only about a month in business, Trè Locally Sourced is continuously booked each week. The sky’s the limit for this food truck, Howells said.
Find Tre’s Locally Sourced on Facebook with a listing of upcoming events.
- Photos: Davin Jurgensen
