Pocatello food truck chefs are thriving on a dream
Story and photos by Elise Barker
A central question propels Patrick Shepherd-Blalock and Noah Espinoza: What does it mean to thrive?
The energetic chefs behind Pocatello’s newest food truck, Thrive: Artisanal Bowls and Wraps, focus on internationally-inspired food with Idaho tastebuds in mind, offering dishes such as a Thai peanut chicken wrap, a Surf & Turf bowl with steak and ahi poke ceviche, and sides like Mediterranean chickpea salad and buffalo cauliflower wings.
When they were bakers for Fort Hall Casino, the duo found themselves taste-testing their products and eating sugary food all day.
“So many cheesecake breakfasts,” Shepherd-Blalock said. “We were making ourselves sick.”
But Thrive reflects “the kind of food we like to eat at home,” Espinoza said. “Well-prepared food that makes us feel energized and fueled.”
Their truck is parked at the intersection of Center Street and Union Pacific, one block from Main Street—outside of Brick 243, a gastropub that provides Thrive patrons with beverage service on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings.
“It’s an arterial location in Old Town,” Shepherd-Blalock said. “We’ve got the trains right across the street, pumping the lifeblood into the heart of our city.”
Ahi poke ceviche, barbeque steak and buffalo cauliflower from Thrive.
That centralized location and the practical realities of the food truck business have changed the nature of their work.
“At the bakery, we are always in the kitchen with a wall between us and the patrons,” Espinoza said. “But now we feel connected to the community, connected to our town and state. Thrive has invited people into our lives.”
The food truck demands social involvement, as the duo take orders, prep food, and deliver meals directly to their patrons. The Thrive chefs feel as if they are feeding the community of Pocatello, “all with these four hands,” Espinoza said.
The chefs at Thrive have a contagious enthusiasm—even working over a hot stove in an unairconditioned food truck on a summer day—because they are driven by their vision.
“It’s easy to hang out in this hot box because it’s my dream,” Shepherd-Blalock said.
