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German Sierra, founding father of Pana Food Truck in Santa Cruz, California, by no means imagined his yearning for a childhood consolation meals would lead him to construct a thriving enterprise with a loyal following and the excellence of Yelp’s Top 100 Food Trucks.
“My brother and I came to the United States in 2016 [from Venezuela],” he says. “There weren’t any arepas. We really eat arepas day by day in Venezuela, so we wanted them. My brother was like, ‘Hey, why do not we make some arepas and take them to the streets, and possibly folks will purchase them?'”
Armed with foil-wrapped arepas and selfmade Venezuelan juices, the brothers arrange exterior a grocery store. They did not promote a single one. A police officer stopped them, asking for a allow they did not know they wanted. As an alternative of giving up, Sierra gave the meals away and stored trying to find a method ahead.
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“Generally there’s a bit of miscommunication between entities. Generally the well being division will [have] completely different guidelines than the town,” Sierra says, describing the challenges he confronted attempting to get his enterprise off the ground. “There are particular locations to park. You can not park all over the place as a result of there’s gonna be competitors with eating places.”
As a enterprise with one core providing, Sierra needed to promote the worth of arepas to prospects who had by no means heard of them.
“It was arduous at first — and [is] nonetheless arduous — to persuade folks why we do not have different dishes,” Sierra says. “We wished to concentrate on arepas [so] there is no such thing as a confusion of what we promote, and it is memorable.”
Small changes, like itemizing arepas as “rooster” or “beef” on the menu, helped introduce the dish to American diners and scale back confusion with out dropping cultural authenticity. “When prospects come, they need 30-second selections — no half an hour determining the menu and what to get,” Sierra says.
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As phrase unfold, Sierra targeted on making connections with prospects, pairing training in regards to the meals with free samples to encourage repeat visits. Early on, he acknowledged that a superb buyer expertise made folks extra possible to decide on Pana over one other restaurant.
“I did not wanna be simply within the food truck business,” he says. “I wish to be within the heart-warming enterprise, as a result of the meals makes your coronary heart heat. That is the emotion I wish to create each time.”
Now celebrating six years in enterprise, Pana continues to develop whereas staying true to its roots. In 2025, Sierra and his spouse, Gabriella Ramirez, opened their first brick-and-mortar restaurant in downtown Santa Cruz. “It wasn’t an in a single day success, and we’re nonetheless rising and enhancing,” Sierra says. “We’re only a child, and there is a lot that we will change and enhance.”
For Sierra, each arepa is an opportunity to share a chunk of dwelling, and to construct what he calls “an arepa empire, one arepa at a time.”
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After turning a yearning for arepas into one in every of Yelp’s Prime 100 Meals Vans of 2025 and opening a brick-and-mortar, Sierra’s recommendation for present and future enterprise house owners is evident:
- Begin small however keep constant. Break overwhelming challenges into smaller steps and decide to displaying up in your prospects day by day.
- Adapt to your viewers whereas staying genuine. Customer education can assist your viewers perceive new choices and develop goodwill in your neighborhood.
- Lead with generosity. Heat service and significant interactions matter simply as a lot as what’s on the menu. Prospects return not just for taste, but additionally for connection.
- Take into consideration the massive image. For Sierra, promoting arepas was by no means nearly meals — it was about creating heart-warming experiences. Any platform, whether or not it is a meals truck or restaurant, generally is a car to share your mission.
- Play the lengthy sport. Constructing one thing significant takes time, persistence and fervour. If your corporation is not an instantaneous success, analysis the steps you will have to take to realize smaller objectives that get you nearer to your imaginative and prescient.
Watch the episode above to listen to instantly from German Sierra, and subscribe to Behind the Review for extra from new enterprise house owners and reviewers each Wednesday.
Editorial contributions by Jiah Choe and Kristi Lindahl
