Ghetto Tacos keeps cool as temperatures climb

JOPLIN, Mo- If you can’t handle the heat, get out of the kitchen! At least, that’s what food truck workers at Ghetto Tacos in Joplin have learned to manage.

"Now in the truck, it probably feels like 105...close to 110," said Marcos Renteria, co-owner of Ghetto Tacos.

Despite the intense heat, Renteria and his team have found ways to make it manageable. The secret? Pushing the heat out.

"We have some split units," Renteria explained. "So what we do? We push the heat out. We try to try to push it out. And then we run some fans and, drinking a lot of water."

But it wasn’t always that way. Ghetto Tacos started under more humble conditions.

"We started under a tent. We used to push out our cooker, and we had a trailer where we pull it all down. And then it was like 500 pounds. I don't know. It was really heavy," Renteria reminisced. "But when we started here, you know, in the heat, it was now there. We didn't. Only thing we had was fans. But it was really hot. Now, looking back was like, man, it was all worth it."

Seven years later, Ghetto Tacos has grown significantly. The business now boasts a fleet of food trucks and even a brick-and-mortar restaurant in Webb City with proper air conditioning.

"Because now you can appreciate what you have now. And I do appreciate it. Especially the customer. So, yes, we went through winter, summer…under a tent," Renteria reflected.

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