Every few seconds, a hand reaches out from the truck window with another container overstuffed with tangy jerk chicken and crispy spiced sambusas.<\/p>\n
With each heaping order handed off, more students step into line to place an order at Kaf\u00e9 Mamai.<\/p>\n
The chef and founder, Abudujannah Soud, has been serving his signature African-Caribbean flavors at the University of Utah for more than seven years. It\u2019s where he first launched his food truck. But this month marks his last operating on campus.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not when \u2014 or how \u2014 he wanted it to end.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s painful for me,\u201d Soud said. \u201cI have been there for so long. I\u2019m still going through the shock of how I\u2019m going to get the income that I was getting there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Soud had been part of a little collective of seven local food trucks, largely owned by people of color, that regularly park outside the student Union building and in the plaza east of the U.\u2019s Marriott Library. They pull up each weekday before lunch time.<\/p>\n
This fall, though, the U. decided not to renew the annual contracts it had with each individual truck.<\/p>\n
Get Top Stories newsletter. The day\u2019s biggest stories every morning, delivered right to your inbox.<\/p>\n
Soud and several other owners said they got an email just three weeks before fall classes started that informed them the school planned to \u201cmove to a new model,\u201d according to copies of the email shared with The Salt Lake Tribune.<\/p>\n
Instead of their seven trucks, the U. is bringing a third-party management company in that will organize a different weekly rotation of both big-chain and local food trucks. To participate, each truck needs to sign a contract with \u2014 and fork over 10% of their daily profits to \u2014 the overarching Utah Food Truck League.<\/p>\n
The Tribune spoke with three food truck owners who have long operated at the U.; each said the league only offered them two days a week on campus, at most, after years of showing up for five.<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Kaf\u00e9 Mamai food truck chef Abudujannah Soud serves up a heaping helping of grilled jerk chicken with rice and beans at an event for incoming freshmen at the University of Utah on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) University of Utah incoming freshmen J.T. Torbey, Henri Saussus, Lucas Mault and Griffen Blake, from left, dig into a plate of grilled jerk chicken from the Kaf\u00e9 Mamai food truck on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
Soud wasn\u2019t willing to do it. His Kaf\u00e9 Mamai truck already operates on ever-thinning margins as he recreates the tastes of his homeland Lamu, a small island off the coast of Kenya. He\u2019s kept his prices relatively low despite rising ingredient costs, because he knows students often don\u2019t have much to spare.<\/p>\n
He knows those students by name, and even has a few regulars who text him their order so they can quickly snag it between classes. Once, he celebrated the wedding of two students who met while placing orders at Kaf\u00e9 Mamai.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe food truck owners are part of this community,\u201d Soud said. \u201cBut they\u2019ve pushed us out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tension over new direction<\/p>\n
The original food truck coalition at the University of Utah started 13 years ago with Bento Truck.<\/p>\n
Married couple Katsu and Tokiko Yamazaki were the first to develop a loyal campus following for their fresh teriyaki and tempura bowls. That loyalty, though, wasn\u2019t returned by the university, Katsu Yamazaki said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wish they would\u2019ve given us a fair transition,\u201d he said. \u201cI wish they treated us like humans and not just a piece of paper, a contract.\u201d<\/p>\n
(Evelyn Harris | Amplify Utah) Bento Truck, which serves Japanese cuisine, is stationed in front of the Marriott Library on the University of Utah campus in this photo from January 2026.<\/p>\n
Yamazaki had already placed a huge order to his specialty vendor in Las Vegas for Japanese products ahead of the school year when he received the university\u2019s Aug. 3 email stating his existing contract would not be renewed. <\/p>\n
Both he and Soud asked for more time, at least a semester, so they could recalibrate.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey said, \u2018No,\u2019\u201d Yamazaki said. \u201cThey gave no reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just a few months earlier, in June, a U. official in a message reassured Yamazaki about his place on campus after news that Jerry Basford, the administrator Yamazaki and other food truck owners had long worked with, was set to retire. Yamazaki shared a copy of that message with The Tribune.<\/p>\n
The U. also posted an update in June about dining options on campus, celebrating that a \u201chost of local food truck favorites also roll onto campus most days during the school year.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement about the change, the university acknowledged it \u201cshould have communicated the transition earlier and more effectively\u201d to the existing food truck operators.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe understand why the timing has been frustrating, particularly for operators who have built their businesses around a regular campus presence,\u201d said U. spokesperson Rebecca Walsh. \u201cThat\u2019s fair feedback, and we can learn from it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the school said it stands by its decision under a new dining director to implement what it\u2019s calling a \u201ccoordinated food truck model\u201d with the Utah Food Truck League.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe must make decisions based on what we believe will best serve students, faculty and staff across the university,\u201d Walsh added.<\/p>\n
The biggest reason for the new model, she said, is that it will allow the roughly 6,000 U. students who live on campus to pay for their meals at food trucks with money from their dorm dining plans, which are required at most residence halls.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s because the Utah Food Truck League will now use U.-provided payment devices that accept those meal plan dollars. <\/p>\n
The league is also paying a one-time $10,000 charge to be the U.\u2019s food truck provider for the 2026-27 school year, Walsh said, which will go toward integrating those devices, marketing and other operational costs.<\/p>\n
Once participating food truck owners share 10% of their campus earnings with the league, owners retain the rest of their revenue, said Eliot Steimle, the league\u2019s general manager.<\/p>\n
For Yamazaki, who felt he had \u201cno other option\u201d but to join the league, the 10% cut stands to to significantly slash he and his wife\u2019s income \u2014 on top of being scheduled on campus just two days a week.<\/p>\n
The percentage likely amounts to more than the couple and others were previously paying to lease a parking spot at the U., which ranged from about $3,450 to $4,500 annually, according to the school and several food truck owners.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat do they give me? They don\u2019t give me any new customers. They don\u2019t give me a new location,\u201d he said. \u201cBut they get 10% of my sales. How is that fair?\u201d<\/p>\n
Yamazaki\u2019s voice quivered. \u201cWe\u2019re just trying to work hard to make a living.\u201d<\/p>\n
Launching a petition<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Maryem Ghazal runs the window at Olive\u2019s Oasis food truck during an event on the University of Utah for incoming freshmen on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
Maryem Ghazal, who runs the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern food truck Olive\u2019s Oasis with her mom and aunt, started a petition to push back on the U.\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n
Ghazal is a student at the U. and takes mostly online classes so she can help operate the family business, which the university in 2025 called \u201cone of the most popular food stops on campus.\u201d They\u2019ve parked at the U. for more than three years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe respectfully ask the University of Utah to reconsider its decision,\u201d Ghazal wrote in an Instagram post, sharing the petition.<\/p>\n
It has collected more than 1,500 signatures, as well as about 40 comments from students, faculty, staff and alumni pleading with the university to keep the original trucks on campus.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been eating lunch from the Library Plaza food trucks for years,\u201d one person wrote. \u201cThe food is wonderful, and many of the vendors have become friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another added, \u201cThese trucks are part of our campus community. We should continue to value our relationship with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
A third asked the U. not to \u201cget between my post-exam shawarma fries and cheap pizza slices.\u201d<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Alabadi Mayada joins her sister and niece as she prepares orders in the Olive\u2019s Oasis food truck at the University of Utah on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
The issue also came up during the August meeting of the university\u2019s Academic Senate.<\/p>\n
Jack O\u2019Leary, a graduate student and former University of Utah student body president, lamented the change.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a really great environment out there on Library Plaza,\u201d he said. \u201cI know a lot of students really loved having our small, local businesses on campus, myself included.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah Shreeves, dean of libraries, added in a comment that the trucks \u201cwere an important resource for our students who are studying and working in the library.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a student, Ghazal has taken her appeal to the school\u2019s student government, the Associated Students of the University of Utah. She hopes the group might be able to sway the U.\u2019s administration.<\/p>\n
The U. said it\u2019s seen the petition, noting, \u201cWe take that feedback seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n
Additionally, Walsh said, \u201cStudents and ASUU are welcome to provide feedback, and we will listen to it. However, we don\u2019t want to create a false expectation that the petition or an appeal to ASUU will change this policy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018More consistent and better quality\u2019<\/p>\n
The U. said there are a few more reasons it\u2019s moving forward with this plan:<\/p>\n
\u2022 The new model of rotating vendors \u201cresponds, in part, to student, staff and faculty feedback calling for more diverse food choices.\u201d<\/p>\n
The existing food truck owners say they already provide diverse options: Each offers a different type of cuisine, and Soud\u2019s Kaf\u00e9 Mamai truck is the only campus dining spot that serves verified halal meat.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The U. also says the food trucks that park on Library Plaza may be causing infrastructure damage; the plaza is technically the roof of several library floors that sit below the cement. <\/p>\n
It\u2019s why the university says it\u2019s permanently moving the area where food trucks set up to the west side of the library, near the parking lot along 1500 East. The existing food truck owners say they have no issue with relocating on campus.<\/p>\n
(Christopher Cherrington | The Salt Lake Tribune)<\/p>\n
\u2022 According to the U., the new setup will also standardize the vetting process: The Utah Food Truck League will \u201cverify that each participating truck meets university insurance, health, fire and other operating requirements.\u201d The original food truck owners added they follow all necessary requirements.<\/p>\n
The food truck overhaul had nothing to do with Chartwells, the primary dining provider on campus, Walsh noted, despite rumors the company was involved.<\/p>\n
Troy D\u2019Ambrosio, chief of staff for U. President Taylor Randall, said during the Academic Senate meeting last month that the university\u2019s food truck policy \u201cwas pretty random.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThis new setup will allow for more consistent and better quality food trucks on campus,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Steimle, with the Utah Food Truck League, said a lot of trucks have expressed interest in parking at the U. and serving students. He said he\u2019s looking forward to the league providing those options.<\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully it\u2019s a good experience,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The league oversees about 150 trucks, Steimle estimated. For a spot like the U., he said, about 50 to 70 will be in the rotation.<\/p>\n
He schedules trucks at locations based on popularity \u2014 so if a lot of students visit a truck, he said, that vendor will appear more frequently. Scheduling will be reassessed in December.<\/p>\n
Members of the original food truck coalition say they\u2019re not opposed to more trucks serving campus, but they don\u2019t think they should need to reduce their own schedules to accommodate. <\/p>\n
There are fewer places to set up now, though. The U. is no longer offering spots outside the student Union building, and it\u2019s limiting the amount of food trucks permitted near the library to five when it used to allow seven.<\/p>\n
The school has said it\u2019s assessing whether to add more sites in the future.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope current operators remain part of campus,\u201d Walsh said. So far, she added, \u201cWe are excited that the majority of operators have signed up to participate in the centralized model.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018We have no choice\u2019<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Customers wait for orders from a number of food truck vendors as they attend a University of Utah welcome event.<\/p>\n
Like Yamazaki, Ghazal said her family felt they didn\u2019t have another option.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t want to, but we have to,\u201d Ghazal said. \u201cWe\u2019re just trying to make the best out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finding another place where it\u2019s permitted to park and the league isn\u2019t already contracted is also difficult, several said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t just go park anywhere,\u201d Soud noted.<\/p>\n
In a meeting with the U., the original owners offered to instead dedicate 10% of their profits to university scholarships if it meant they could continue operating on campus, separate from the league. The U. declined.<\/p>\n
Soud had already been doing that. But that will end as his time on campus does; he doesn\u2019t want to see that percentage handed over to the league.<\/p>\n
Steimle said he\u2019s spoken with each of the food truck owners who\u2019d been at the U. and \u201ccan see where they\u2019re coming from being upset.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut there\u2019s no solution that everyone agrees on,\u201d Steimle said.<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Customers at the University of Utah line up for fresh food from Kaf\u00e9 Mamai, including Swoop the mascot, on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
Yamazaki and Ghazal, who ultimately signed on with the league, said they\u2019re going to have to raise prices to try and compensate for the changes.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust like we have no choice with the league, we have no choice but to raise the price of the food,\u201d Yamazaki said.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s used to serving about 100 to 200 customers each day on campus \u2014 anywhere from three to five times more than he sees off campus, including at festivals and events.<\/p>\n
The new rotation formally starts Sept. 8. He\u2019s going to see how the fall semester goes, but he\u2019s already considering whether he will need to find a different job.<\/p>\n
Soud said several owners cried during their meeting with the university. One questioned how they would be able to make their mortgage payments. \u201cThese people, their whole lives are built on the U.,\u201d Soud said.<\/p>\n
Ghazal said her family is still paying off the $2,500 loan they took out to start their truck. But stepping away from the U. would also mean stepping away from the campus catering contracts that come up throughout the year.<\/p>\n
Soud isn\u2019t sure how he\u2019ll make up for losing those, which had become a big part of his business. He also owns a brick-and-mortar Kaf\u00e9 Mamai restaurant, at 49 E. Gallivan Ave in downtown Salt Lake City, and will focus on that; most of the other owners don\u2019t have that option, he acknowledged.<\/p>\n
He hopes pulling the brake on his food truck won\u2019t be permanent.<\/p>\n
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Kaf\u00e9 Mamai food truck chef Abudujannah Soud makes a plate during a University of Utah campus welcome event on Saturday, Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
sltrib.com is now free to access \u2014 no subscription required. We made this decision because we believe access to trustworthy, independent news shouldn\u2019t depend on what you can afford \u2014 especially as misinformation and AI-generated content continue to rise.<\/p>\n
Free to read doesn\u2019t mean free to produce. Our reporters show up every day to ask hard questions and hold powerful institutions to account. That work takes resources. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on support from people who believe it matters. Make a donation today to fund local news that serves Utah communities.<\/p>\n
You can help us bring more local news to more communities today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Every few seconds, a hand reaches out from the truck window with another container overstuffed with tangy jerk chicken and crispy spiced sambusas. With each heaping order handed off, more students step into line to place an order at Kaf\u00e9 Mamai. The chef and founder, Abudujannah Soud, has been serving his signature African-Caribbean flavors at<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49018,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[37341,37338,37339,33831,37337,4815,4813,4811,37342,37340,4814,4812],"class_list":["post-49017","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-utah","tag-food-truck-league","tag-kafe-mamai","tag-olives-oasis","tag-university-of-utah","tag-university-of-utah-food-trucks","tag-utah","tag-utah-dining","tag-utah-food","tag-utah-food-truck-league","tag-utah-food-trucks","tag-utah-grocery-stores","tag-utah-restaurants"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dc\/117417895908823830","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49017"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49017\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}