There’s a new sunny spot right off the main drag that takes thousands of locals and visitors to Ijams Nature Center and its surrounding Urban Wilderness. A small, round, yellow trailer, compact enough to be pulled by a Subaru, is parked in a grassy patch of land next to the parking lot at SoKno Taco.
This delightful little pitstop is Backyard Coffee and Trail Snacks, a grab-and-go eatery serving local coffee and small bites for adventures of all sizes. Here is our conversation with owner Rachel Weaver on her first mobile food venture.
What inspired you to start a food trailer?
In all of the startup and new business classes, they always say to “Start Small” so that’s what we did. We consider our food trailer a stepping stone to a larger enterprise, whether it’s a cafe, a handful of trailers, or a national brand of trail snacks, this is only the start.
It’s no secret Knoxville has seen an explosion of entrepreneurial ventures and spunky start-ups. Seeing Rachel in her custom-fabricated trailer, she operates like she’s been doing this for years. Though this isn’t her first time working in the food industry, this is definitely her first start-up.
Tell us more about your offerings for “trail snacks:”
With the growing popularity of the Urban Wilderness, we wanted to create something for people to take with them on their adventures in South Knoxville…something nutritious and portable to accompany them and their active lifestyle.
How did you come up with your menu?
We believe in providing healthy fuel for your day, whether you’re going to your desk job or going to the trails, everyone needs a nutritious bite and some long-lasting energy. Therefore, we try to choose every ingredient that we cook with based on its nutritional contribution. Our menu is basically comprised of things that we’ve been making ourselves for breakfast for a long time and decided we wanted to share them.
South Knoxville and the Urban Wilderness have seen explosive growth in the last few years, with trail connections always underway and local groups investing thousands of volunteer hours into the constant evolution of our public play spaces. In South Knoxville, property values are rising quickly as more people move to Knoxville, and into the more urban areas to be closer to their favorite adventure spots.
There’s still a lot of growth to be seen in the neighborhood, especially in the locally-focused foodie scene. Backyard Coffee and Trail Snacks is a perfect fit for the landscape. Though they are completely mobile, they’re staying put for a little while to get acquainted with what might be the most adventurous neighborhood in town.
Their current menu includes: Locally roasted coffee, espresso-based drinks and cold brew. Breakfast items – egg & veggie sandwiches on whole grain English muffins, triple seed breakfast bread made with flax, chia, and hemp hearts (also vegan), nonfat Greek yogurt parfaits with fresh fruit and almond butter, whole grain muffins, and homemade trailsnacks including energy balls, protein bars and cookies.
Who are your local sources in town?
We get our eggs and some of our vegetables from Crooked Road Farm in South Knoxville and will always try to source our fruit locally too. Our blueberries this week are from Blackberries and Blueberries on Bluegrass Rd (we handpicked them on Saturday!). Our coffee will also always be locally roasted. Right now, we are serving Golden Roast and will rotate our next vendor in in a few weeks.
What are you excited about in the next six months?
I’m just excited about becoming a staple in people’s routines. I want people to be able to count on me as a reliable and healthy alternative for breakfast and snack fuel.
Keep up with Backyard Coffee and Trail Snacks on Instagram at @backyardtrailsnack and visit the sunshine yellow trailer next to SoKno Taco at 3701 Sevierville Pike.
