Grumpy Claude’s Food Truck Serves up Taste of the Caribbean
Claude Alkins is in the business of making people happy, which is ironic considering that the sign on his trailer refers to him as “Grumpy Claude.”
“It’s super easy to go up and talk to Grumpy Claude, who is the nicest person you’ll ever meet, actually,” said Mariah Grant, a customer.
It’s a nickname he got at a previous job that stuck. But for the last six years, this Brooklyn Park resident has traveled around the metro in his trailer introducing Caribbean eats to Twin Cities streets.
Recently, he’s been bringing the Grumpy Claude food truck to the Brooklyn Park Fleet Farm.
“My mom and dad, they’re from Trinidad,” Alkins said. “That food was always around our home. So what I decided to do was, Minnesota didn’t have a lot of Caribbean places to go to. So what I decided to do was bring the Caribbean to Minnesota.”
A seasoned cheeseburger with a guacamole mayonnaise spread from Grumpy Claude’s.
His menu consists of familiar items like burgers and chicken wings, albeit with a little more seasoning for some added flavor.
Then there’s his signature item, the roti. It’s a hand rolled flat bread wrapped around a flavor-filled curry stew.
“Consists of chicken, potatoes, garbanzo beans, herbs and spices, all from the islands, all authentic,” Alkins said.
The item is becoming a favorite among his growing clientele in Brooklyn Park.
“It’s not spicy like Thai food,” Grant said. “I really like the flavors in it.”
For now, Grumpy Claude’s exists only in food truck form. But the hope is for him to one day open a standalone restaurant.
“It’s always been a passion of mine,” Alkins said.
Meanwhile, Alkins said he usually brings the food truck to Fleet Farm on the weekends. To stay up to date on the food truck’s location, he says to check out Grumpy Claude’s Facebook page.
The jerk pork wrap from Grumpy Claude’s food truck.
