The Flavors of Ethiopia food truck, which was supposed to debut on April 1st in the parking lot of the RC Gas Station at Castro and Market, has been denied a permit to operate by the Planning Department.
As you might recall, last August, a judge ruled in favor of the majority owner-operators of the gas station site, and against developer Joe Tierney, who was seeking to build a six-story, 24-unit mixed-use building on the site. Since then, there has been no movement on developing it.
Flavors of Ethiopia owner Bethlehem "Beti" Kebede told us that she has already signed a five-year lease with the gas station's landlord—with an option for another five years—and put down her first and last month's rent, totaling $6,000. The property owner had informed her that a previous food truck had received a permit to operate at the location, and it shouldn't be a problem for her to receive one either.
Indeed, a search of San Francisco Property Information Maps shows that a Mobile Food Facility (MFF) permit was approved last October at the location, for a business called Rill's Chimney Cake.
But yesterday, the Planning Department informed Kebede that upon further review, it was determined that the previous permit for the MFF was issued by mistake, and is being revoked. "Even if I did apply [for a new permit], it will not work, because of the now-revoked permit," Kebede told us.
Had it been approved, the truck would have been installed under the gas price sign.
Kebede said she plans to present this information to the landlord, in the hopes that they will return her money. If not, she's prepared to take them to small claims court.
The Flavors of Ethiopia truck. (Photo: Flavors of Ethiopia/Facebook)
While Kebede is disappointed that she won't be able to launch her food truck in the Castro, "I don't want to operate my business where it's not permitted," she said. She will continue to look for a location in the city, with the hopes of finding somewhere near the Castro. We'll keep you posted on where Flavors of Ethiopia ends up.
