PORTLAND, Ore. — The anticipated heat wave this coming week has some food cart owners worried for both their employees and customers. Some are already announcing plans to temporarily close up shop next week.
Rico Loverde, chef and owner of the Monster Smash Burgers food cart on Southeast Stark, is planning to temporarily close if temperatures starting Monday get as hot as expected.
"Anything over 95 [degrees], at least our particular cart can't really handle it," said Loverde. "One of the fridges can't keep up and the food becomes unsafe to serve."
The heat is also dangerous for the staff, as it can get 20 to 30 degrees hotter inside the cart compared to outside.
"It's just not safe, it's too hard on the crew," said Loverde.
The business is usually open six days a week but Loverde says they'll likely to be closed most of next week.
"Wasn't expecting this to happen so it's going to be a little bit of a hit financially, but we've got to be safe," he said Loverde.
Other food carts, including MF Tasty on North Williams, also expect to close. Eric Gitenstein runs the food cart with his wife. He says closing a business unexpectedly like this can hurt the bottom line, but it has to be done.
"Because you still have to pay your employees, you're not making any sales ... food business is a business that has really thin margins so any kind of error can affect what you take home or if you're able to pay your bills at the end of the month," explained Gitenstein.
That's why many of food carts hope people will stop by before the heat forces them to temporarily shut down next week.
"If there's a cart that you like, if there's a business you've been wanting to try and haven't found the motivation to show up, this is the weekend to show up," said Gitenstein. "Like, I promise you the owners and employees will thank you so much more for helping make the money while they can before they are forced to be closed."
But as temperatures rise, safety is the priority.
"Whether it's being safe for serving food to the public, having it at the right temperature, or my guys' safety and well-being," said Loverde.