Disney Springs, the popular shopping center in Walt Disney World has officially opened a Local Green food truck, marking the first Black-owned food truck and restaurant to ever be in a Walt Disney World park. theGrio had a front-row seat to experience the food and talk to the co-owners.
Hailing from Atlanta, Local Green is committed to making a difference. The fast-casual restaurant is co-owned by Robyn and Zak Wallace, who are partners in business and marriage.
Offering vegan, vegetarian, and pescatarian dishes, Local Green’s mission is to “redefine healthy, affordable food for all by creating an ecosystem based on trust and accountability.” Now, Local Green has branched beyond Atlanta to Orlando, Florida in a partnership with Disney.
“When we first started Local Green, because we weren’t restaurateurs, I don’t know if the idea was, ‘Hey, we’re gonna be this big and have all of these locations,'” Robyn told theGrio.
“At the time, it was ‘How do we serve the community where we are? How do we allow folks who don’t have access to some of the things, that living in the suburbs we know people have access to, especially people who look like us, and children who look like my children. It really was just an opportunity to go and serve where we were.”
But Local Green goes well beyond just serving its patrons with nutritious (and delicious) food. It is also committed to teaching the community the importance of knowing what you put in your body.
“Where we thrive best is partnering with corporations when they want to directly impact the community,” Zak said. “We’ve been able to really thrive and give direct access and impact the people. U.S. Foods did a partnership with 500 [giveaway] premium boxes. We’re talking salmon, peppers, quinoa, you name it!”
Local Green has provided food to voters during elections as well to support the community in exercising its civic right, especially in Atlanta.
“We gave away over 1,000 meals at the polls for people who were standing outside and in the sun all day,” Zak says.
Through their Disney truck, Local Green is now reaching even more people from all over the world with their food and their mission. “The food, of course, is amazing, but we realized that there was a way to do this in other cities, to make a true impact,” Robyn says.
“Think about it, we have a new guest every day here. We have people who aren’t even from the United States who come.” She adds, “That’s the benefit of being here at Disney, is that we’re able to touch so many different types of communities, and really reengage or reinforce or change the thinking around vegan foods for people who otherwise would never have tried it.”
For more on Local Green, their restaurants, and more, head to their official site here.
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