""There weren't any arepas. We actually eat arepas every day in Venezuela, so we needed them. My brother was like, 'Hey, why don't we make some arepas and take them to the streets, and maybe people will buy them?'""
""Sometimes there's a little miscommunication between entities. Sometimes the health department will [have] different rules than the city,""
""There are specific places to park. You cannot park everywhere because there's gonna be competition with restaurants.""
""It was hard in the beginning - and [is] still hard - to convince people why we don't have other dishes," Sierra says. "We wanted to focus on arepas [so] there is no confusion of what we sell, and it's memorable.""
German Sierra founded Pana Food Truck in Santa Cruz, California after immigrating from Venezuela in 2016. The truck introduced Venezuelan arepas and homemade juices to a market unfamiliar with the dish. Initial attempts produced no sales and encountered permit issues, prompting free distribution and continued efforts to obtain proper permits amid differing city and health department rules. Strategic choices included focusing exclusively on arepas to create a memorable offering and simplifying menu descriptions to 'chicken' or 'beef' to ease American patrons' decision-making. The focused approach and persistence built a loyal following and Yelp Top 100 recognition.
Read at Entrepreneur
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