By Megan Freeman, Aug. 31, 2021
After The Poly Trolley was crushed and destroyed by a eucalyptus tree in March 2020, the Poly Trolley is set to return in September.
The Poly Trolley was a food truck on campus that served hungry students Starbucks, among other quick eats like sliders, tater tots and tacos.
On a cold, windy and rainy day, Jacqueline Lopez, a music education student, heard what she thought was thunder while attending class in Building five. She later found out what she heard was a tree that landed on the coveted Poly Trolley.
“I was in my English class. I was doing, I forgot, a project or paper and then we just heard like a loud noise, and then we checked our phones and found out the Poly Trolley just got crushed,” said Lopez.
Shortly after the Poly Trolley accident, the university closed its doors due to COVID-19.
The pandemic has caused delays in many aspects with the school and the Poly Trolley reopening, but the food truck was hit hard by the shutdown, both metaphorically and literally.
With the website clearly stating it would reopen in fall, students cannot help but wonder, ‘Where is the Poly Trolley?’
Aaron Neilson, the Dining Services Director, confirmed that The Poly Trolley is coming back, and that it will most likely make its debut sometime in September, near Pumpkin Fest.
“We’re going to call it: Poly Trolley Two,” said Neilson. “We’re targeting by the third week of September.”
The trolley will feature its famous items from the old menu like street tacos, along with some new items like elote, which is corn on a stick with mayonnaise, cheese, and butter, and aguas frescas, a series of sweet, iced Mexican beverages.
Neilson said the main reason why the trolley took so long to come back was due to a lack of staff applications. Now that summer is over and many students are looking for work, Neilson is receiving more applicants than ever.
Neilson was eager to announce that tater tots will be making a comeback along with street fries.
“We had a high demand in request to bring back the tater tots from the old Poly Trolley,” said Neilson. “I want the message out there: tater tots are coming back.”
Students are still mourning and remembering the Poly Trolley. Siana Sanchez, a hospitality management major, remembers the Poly Trolley fondly.
“It would sit outside of the library,” said Sanchez. “They had really good pulled pork sandwiches, everyone loved it. It was nice and easy in between classes; they also had good fried avocado, tacos and tater tots.”
Students like Sanchez will be elated to finally rejoice in the return of the iconic food truck. Operating hours and future location will be revealed closer to the debut day.
Graphic by Justin Oo | The Poly Post
