Imagine a fleet of nomadic kitchens roaming the halls, bringing delightful (yet imaginary) culinary treats and treasures to students and faculty alike. Next, imagine these rolling kitchens live in Upper School’s May Hall and are displayed along World Languages Street.
Under the guidance of Upper School Spanish Teacher Alyoska Diaz, students explored Latin-American street food culture. Their mission was to create a unique food truck concept, complete with a Spanish company name, a logo design, and a menu that was not only delicious but also thoughtfully priced.
With the help of Brian Purlee, Upper School Maker and Robotics Coordinator & Science Teacher, students brought their food truck concepts to life using laser-cut parts from a template with cardboard sourced from home. Then, they glued and decorated all the design elements of their truck designs.
Student food truck menus included delicious dishes from Latin American countries and even a few trucks from their own countries of origin, such as Pakistan, Greece, India, and China. On the day of the presentations, they shared the food they had cooked in their home kitchens and “pitched” their truck prototypes, all in Spanish, to their classmates.
When reflecting on the project, students unanimously found it a fun learning experience.
Grace Powell ’26 shared, “I enjoyed researching food from the Dominican Republic, and I liked looking to see what people enjoy eating and drinking there. I made a dessert truck so I had fun looking up Dominican Republic sweets. I’ve never eaten them before, and I made dessert balls of coconut, honey, and ginger. The design of the truck was challenging at times, but I am happy with it. I learned that hot glue is indeed very hot. I learned how to create a menu and label the DR money system. Be sure to try my food at Delicioso!”
“I enjoyed sharing my culture as an international student from China,” said Andy Zheng ’26. “My truck was based on Chinese food. I’m from Wuhan, so I wanted to share our traditional noodle called a hot dry noodle. It’s very thin, and everyone in our province eats it. The artwork on the truck was challenging with paint and glue, and it was my first time working in the makerspace, so there is potential for improvement. I learned a lot from my classmates in their presentations.”
Hamzah Alhamad ’27 enjoyed that he was able to discover other heritages. “I picked Mexico so I made churros and dulce le leche. I also discovered how to cook them and did a good job. It was only my second or third time cooking, so I was pretty happy with the results. I was also happy to discover other heritages, such as Andy’s hot dry noodles,” he said.
In crafting these food truck prototypes, students sparked diverse flavors and ideas and an appreciation for global cuisine!