Usually, chefs are anchored to a restaurant, working long, late hours, including holidays and weekends.
Will Hughes is a different kind of chef. The Daphne native has designed his career to accommodate a flexible lifestyle full of travel and adventure, which explains the words painted on the front of his food truck: “Open Some Days. Closed Others.”
Hughes splits his time among the Eastern Shore, the Bahamas, Colorado and North Carolina, cooking everywhere he goes.
In the last decade, food trucks have become insanely popular across the country. Hughes, who started Will’s Farm Foods in 2014, was a pioneer of the food truck scene in south Alabama and helped write Daphne’s food truck ordinance.
“I love running a food truck because it allows us to do whatever we want,” Hughes says. “We keep it stocked with great ingredients so we can create new dishes on the spot. We’ve served five-course dinners out of this thing. It lets us have fun with our food.”
Hughes’ truck doesn’t have set hours or locations, but it does have a consistent team. Along with Hughes, sous chef Brady Reeves and baker Sylvia Vollmer are always on the truck.
“We have a good time together,” Reeves says. “We are best friends — really more like family.”
Vollmer says working on a food truck allows for more freedom, creativity and spontaneity.
“Will is well-suited for that type of cooking,” Vollmer says. “One time, we were making a cheesecake, and it wasn’t looking pretty enough to serve. Without skipping a beat, he said, ‘We’ll serve cheesecake balls.’ Nothing fazes him.”
To find Will’s Farm Foods, follow him on social media for a loose schedule and to see what’s on the lineup. In addition to serving locations around the Eastern Shore, the food truck is available for events, and Hughes offers catering for any type of gathering, from the largest to the most intimate.
On the Menu
Smoked de Puerco
Ham, bacon, pepper jack cheese and a fried egg are crammed into a ciabatta bun with baby greens, a thick slice of tomato, plenty of avocado and a drizzle of chipotle aioli.
Rock My Face
Asian sesame slaw, perfectly cooked beef tenderloin and a tarragon curry mustard sauce fill two flour tortillas to create a pair of tangy tacos that totally live up to their name.
.98 Special
Seared tuna and a medley of asparagus, mushrooms, red onions, broccoli and cherry tomatoes sit on a bed of quinoa, all topped with chipotle aioli.
Will’s Farm Foods • Open some days, closed others • 454-5245