Christine and I are big fans of entrepreneurship and food so naturally when we learned of Clover food truck we were excited! Apologies to those people who already know about this amazing place. Clover food lab as its called by Ayr, the founder, a former MIT student, is using these portable food trucks as test kitchens for eventually opening his restaurant - a great example of entrepreneurship at work. This is a great way to figure out what customers want while still making money and being able to cover your costs. In February, Clover also switched to a POS system, with a server, an iPod Touch for order-taking which extremely easy and efficient. They are working on accepting email orders, though the bugs are not yet worked out. On their blog, restauranteurs and foodies can follow everything from where Clover gets its ingredients, to when it has a new fangled japanese hot water appliance. They even give daily updates on specials, when they run out of food, and when they'll be back. We really like being kept in the loop as this place as become our go-to for food in Kendall.
Things are going so well that the city of Boston actually invested in Clover's second truck in Feb. In return, Clover plans to create 20 new jobs in under 9 months. An amazing entrepreneurial start for a great restaurant. For everyone out there looking for a delicious and still nutritious breakfast or lunch, let's hope Clover grows beyond projections!
FYI: This delicious food truck is located on Carleton St at the far end of the deadend street located directly across from the MIT Coop on main street. It has fresh juices, delicious rosemary fries, a number of sandwiches (my favorite being the chickpea fritters) and lines down the street. They're definitely worth the wait though!
What do you think of 'Food Lab' concept? Would you be willing to try it as an entrepreneur? What are other industries where you can create a 'lab' concept?
By Christine Ribeiro and Salimah Nooruddin. Christine and Salimah are Associates at MassChallenge.
