Truckin': VSG brings food trucks to Greek Row

“It was so nice for the administration to trust us with a great amount of responsibility to try something new on campus and to prove that this would work,” said VSG president Maryclaire Manard.

As part of the agreement, VSG dipped into its reserves — funds kept separately from the annual budget and typically used for capital investments and other large long-term initiatives — to foot the bill on the initial startup costs, including the installation of picnic tables, flood lights, permanent signage and the electrical outlets the trucks will draw their power from. No current student tuition was used for the project, and the administration agreed to pay the smaller ongoing operating costs, according to Manard. 

The food trucks will pay to use Vanderbilt’s electricity during their shifts on campus and will only be allowed to conduct business on other parts of the grounds as part of organized events. 

“It’s the only initiative on campus that food trucks are allowed on campus for to run their business publicly on a consistent basis,” Manard said.

Manard and VSG had at one time proposed paying the parking meters outside of Towers in order to reserve that space for food trucks, but the location that was eventually agreed upon was the more practical option.

The idea to bring food trucks on campus goes back over a year and a half, when VSG presidential candidates Adam Meyer and Zye Hooks both included the effort on their campaign platforms. As Meyer’s running mate at the time, Manard was familiar with the obstacles to the initiative long before she stepped into office as president.

Manard cited the restrictions Vanderbilt imposes on off-campus businesses conducting business on campus, as well as the natural competitive challenge to Vanderbilt Dining that the trucks’ regular presence would pose. Getting the all-clear from Camp Howard, director of Campus Dining, and Laura Nairon, director of Business Services, was a key step in moving forward with the logistics of the initiative, and Vice Chancellor of Administration Jerry Fife had the final say in approving the project. 

Manard also credited Assistant Vice Chancellor of Real Estate Operations Cliff Joyner as VSG’s primary contact point throughout their work with the administration.

“He was really just the driving force,” Manard said of Joyner. “He was the bridge of communication between Plant Ops, Dining, Business Services and getting the approval from (Vice Chancellor of Administration Jerry) Fife.”

To help delineate the distinction between the trucks as a consistent alternative meal option and Vanderbilt Dining, the food trucks featured through the initiative will accept cash and credit but not the Commodore Card.

“The food trucks wouldn’t want to come on campus if they had to pay for the investment to be able to read the cards,” Manard said. “They’re very mobile businesses, and they can pick up and find clientele elsewhere really easily.”

For Wanderland Director of Events Holley Seals, who helps coordinate events and schedules for the 40 independent vendors, the initiative marks a natural progression for a niche industry that has become a thriving part of Nashville’s culture in the last half-decade.

“It was really good timing that they were ready and that they had worked out the things that were holding them back from making it happen,” Seals said. “The food truck industry in general was certainly to a tipping point here in the city, and it was really just a matter of time before they made their way to Vanderbilt campus anyway.”

This weekend's full schedule has been posted on :

FRIDAY October 12:

Wrapper's Delight, 7 p.m. - 11 p.m.

Pizza Buds, 11 p.m. - 3 a.m.

Saturday October 13:

Puckett's Trolley, 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.

The Grilled Cheeserie, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Sunday October 14:

Waffle Boss, 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.

The Latin Wagon, 5 p.m. - 9 p.m.