Will food carts return to downtown Peoria for 2022? So far, it's unlikely

Dean Muellerleile, Journal Star
·2 min read
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In this 2012 file photo, Alfredo Tome, left, and Linh Luong, center, prepare and serve authentic Vietnamese cuisine at the Thanh Linh food cart at the Peoria County Courthouse Plaza.
In this 2012 file photo, Alfredo Tome, left, and Linh Luong, center, prepare and serve authentic Vietnamese cuisine at the Thanh Linh food cart at the Peoria County Courthouse Plaza.

Pushcarts may not be serving food in downtown Peoria for a third straight year.

For more than four decades, food carts have been a popular lunchtime option outside the Peoria County Courthouse.

As of Tuesday, their return seemed unlikely.

"We have not yet received any applications for sidewalk and street vendors outside of the courthouse in Peoria," said Stephanie Streight, environmental health food program coordinator for the Peoria City/County Health Department. She said the agency typically begins receiving food license applications in March or early April.

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Stacy Peterson, a spokesperson for the city of Peoria, confirmed the dearth of applicants: The city hasn't issued a pushcart license for downtown since 2019 — pre-COVID — when it granted eight. So far in 2022, no vendors have applied.

"With the increase of people working from home and less population density downtown, it’s not surprising that there are no food carts present," said Peterson. "As our community transitions out of the pandemic and more people return to downtown, we will see if the food carts also return."

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Thanh Linh Vietnamese Restaurant is one eatery that won't be operating a food cart downtown.

Owner Linh Luong said the restaurant doesn't have enough staffing to also run a pushcart. The Thanh Linh food cart had operated from 2000-2019. "I loved it so much," she said.

Haddad’s Restaurant is another vendor that won't. Haddad's has operated a pushcart outside the Peoria County Courthouse since 1980, but it won't be back for 2022.

In this 2018 photo, the Morton Junior High seventh-grade orchestra plays outside the Peoria County Courthouse while in the background Loreece Haddad serves customers at the pushcart for Haddad's Restaurant.
In this 2018 photo, the Morton Junior High seventh-grade orchestra plays outside the Peoria County Courthouse while in the background Loreece Haddad serves customers at the pushcart for Haddad's Restaurant.

Gabriel Haddad, one of the owners of the family business, told the Journal Star last year, “There’s hardly anybody downtown.”

His reservations remain regarding 2022: "Will downtown have the people it once did? ... Will business women and men be back?"

Though COVID-related state restrictions on food carts have been lifted, the pandemic's effects linger. As Peterson mentioned, many employees who once worked — and ate lunch — downtown are still working remotely.

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Rather than bringing back a pushcart, Haddad's Lebanese-influenced restaurant pivoted. It remodeled its dining room after receiving a new facade through Revamp Peoria, an initiative designed to help small businesses the coronavirus pandemic affected.

Finally, Haddad's invested in a food truck, Tony's on Wheels, designed by Gabriel Haddad's son Antoine "Tony" Haddad. The food truck is accepting bookings for appearances. They can be scheduled by calling 309-643-7344 or 309-453-1506. Offerings are to include chicken and beef gyros, pork chops, burgers and falafel. For updates, visit the Haddad's Restaurant Facebook page.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Will downtown food carts return to Peoria, Illinois, in 2022?