FirenZen's food truck brings Asian cuisine to the streets of Italy. To find out more about the project, we spoke with Teresa Hong, an engineer from Shanghai who lived for years in the United States, and then moved to Italy and opened a restaurant in Florence.

First of all, what is FirenZen and how was it born?

“FirenZen promotes Asian cuisine with quality dishes from China, Korea, Japan and Thailand. When I moved to Italy I discovered that there aren't many restaurants that promote the Asian tradition. So I opened FirenZen as a restaurant ”.

Why did you choose to also open a food truck?

"For years I have been thinking about the possibility of expanding my business with a food truck. When I lived in the United States I discovered the world of food trucks and in general street food is widespread in Asia, so it was quite natural for me to think of this solution to bring our food all over Italy ".

How do the food truck and the restaurant coexist?

“The restaurant has a local clientele, while the food truck allows to travel across Italy, in public events and private catering activities, and to promote our cuisine”.

Let’s talk about the choice of the vehicle, in your case the food truck ...

"The preparation of our dishes requires specific tools, and the menu also consists of several elements, so we chose an option that would allow us to have plenty of space on board. The food truck is also well suited to our desire to travel across Italy".

The current situation is not the best for public events. How is the food truck used in this period?

“We are using FirenZen's truck at private events. But it is such a flexible solution that in the coming months we could also use it for home deliveries and take away. We'll see how the situation develops, but I'm optimistic: with the food truck you can imagine many different activities! "