“The Great Food Truck Race” just rolled into its 17th season on the Food Network, and Central Florida’s own Plates on Deck is part of the four-wheeled armada.
This Lakeland-based catering company, repped by chef Ken James, partner and fiancee Ziomara Taveras and his cousin Samuel Jenkins, are part of the “Games on the Gulf,” where, along with eight other food trucks, they’ll be vying for a grand prize of $50,000 while feeding folks on a coast-hugging journey from Houston to Miami.
No spoilers, of course, but POD came out swinging in Episode 1, in part with their Shrimp Passa Passa Pasta, a dish that won First Place at Fusion Fest 2023.
“It’s where jerk meets Alfredo,” says James, a Queens, New York native who says it’s one that embodies the Plates of Deck “eclectic soul food” philosophy.
“As a kid in Queens, Flushing especially, you’re growing up in the world’s borough,” says James, whose mother’s family hails from the American South and his father’s from the Caribbean island of Barbuda. “I haven’t been able to travel the world physically, but being from Queens, I was able to eat the world.”
Eventually, he began to cook for it, rolling through work in the nonprofit sector and really catching the bug while coaching a middle school competitive culinary team. Plates on Deck began as a way to cook for friends and family while James was working as a chef/dietician in a residence for adults with developmental disabilities. He’d also logged time as an emcee for banquet-style events.
“I knew what that looked like from one side, but always felt drawn to the back of the house,” James told the Orlando Sentinel. “I’ve always loved to cook and feed people, so it just made sense to take Plates on Deck into a full-blown catering business.”
His fiancee had a hand in it, too, after James made her a seafood boil on one of their early dates.
“I was hooked,” she laughs. Her marketing background took over. “I realized he had something special and said, ‘You need to turn this into a legit business.'”
That business was booming in Episode 1; you’ll have to watch for yourselves to see how it turns out, but both James and Tavares say it was an amazing experience.
“[Celebrity chef/host] Tyler Florence was great for throwing curveballs … so, it was all about rolling with the punches and being able to adapt and be quick,” James says. And an emotional ride. “It was heavy on the tears!”
Tavares backs him up.
“It’s a competition, of course, so you’re always leery about trying to be friends with everyone, but at the same time, you’re all there and everyone’s excited and it’s impossible not to establish some connection, so it’s really nice to come out of this with new friends. It was a great experience.”
Not without a few bumps, though. Most of them to James’ head.
“Having a food truck, something that’s been a goal of mine since I was 15, was everything I dreamed of and everything I didn’t,” says the 6’2″ culinarian. “The first few days, I hit my head on the roof window lever at least five times a day!”
What other hazards and high notes await?
Follow along on the Food Network, where episodes drop at 8 p.m. every Sunday, to see if Central Florida’s spokes-truckers will make it to the end of the road.
Want to reach out? Find me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram @amydroo or on the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com. For more foodie fun, join the Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
