Chattanooga vegans have a new local option in The Green Tambourine, a food truck serving only vegan foods.
Opened in September, The Green Tambourine is St. Elmo resident Chelsey Breedy-Oyer's first restaurant, though she has previously worked in numerous back- and front-of-the-house roles in other restaurants, including as sous chef at a tapas bar in Colorado.
"I always knew I wanted to have a restaurant," said Breedy-Oyer, who decided to go the food truck route because that meant she wouldn't necessarily have to deal with employees, and could make her own schedule.
Every Sunday during the Chattanooga Market's season, The Green Tambourine is at Finley Stadium, where it also parks for Food Truck Thursdays every Thursday from 11 a.m. to noon. The truck also attends most major events around town. Locations are announced via its Facebook page, she said.
"The food is delicious and healthy, and it's different than anything Chattanooga has had before," said Breedy-Oyer.
One of the most popular items is the five-bean chili, which Breedy-Oyer said has won a couple of competitions against both vegetarian and meaty chilis. The Green Tambourine's hummus is also a hit, as well as the entirely vegan "eat it raw" cookie dough, which contains no raw eggs and is safe to eat before cooking. Her favorite dish is the black bean and roasted-red-pepper quesadilla she recently started offering.
The menu changes every four to six weeks, but always contains a hummus option, sandwich or wrap, and soup or chili.
The truck's "Feed it Forward" program allows customers to buy a $7 meal voucher for someone who's hungry but can't afford food. Breedy-Oyer then takes the truck to an area of town considered a "food dessert," where there are few healthy food options, and gives away a meal for each voucher purchased. About 50 meals have been given away so far, she said.
In addition to mobile food service, The Green Tambourine also offers catering for events of all sizes and budgets.
For more information, visit facebook.com/greentambourinechatt or greentambourinechatt.com, or call 762-0301.