It’s like an initiation rite for new food trucks in Arlington.
For several weeks, the newbies are subjected to a barrage of visits from police officers, who themselves are responding to complaints from local businesses. Most of the complaints are made when the trucks are in Rosslyn or Crystal City. In almost every case, an officer responds, checks the truck’s license and leaves after verifying the truck is licensed and not illegally parked.
We started paying attention to this trend in October, when the BBQ Bandidos truck was the target of police visits (see photo, left). In December, we felt compelled to write about the Bada Bing truck’s travails as it was inspected at least eight times.
Now, the Big Cheese truck is becoming a frequent destination for license-checking officers.
On Friday, while the truck was parked on North Lynn Street in Rosslyn, police were called to check its license.
“Showed him my permit and he was on his way. I love Arlington,” truck owner Patrick Rathbone tweeted at the time. Today, while the truck was serving customers in Crystal City, another call for police.
“The police checked my permits then moved but the yellow jacket [Crystal City Shops] security guys are lurking,” Rathbone wrote.
According to Arlington Police spokeswoman Det. Crystal Nosal, police must respond whenever they receive a complaint.
“Dispatchers are required to send officers out,” Nosal said. “We cannot pick and choose what calls we go to.”
Nosal also noted that the detective in charge of issuing vending licenses will often respond to specific complaints and will make random checks of food trucks he does not recognize.
Recent Stories

Arlington Travel Basketball (ATB) will be conducting tryouts for our 2023-24 teams beginning Tuesday 10/2.
There is no charge for these tryouts.
Interested players must pre-register and attend at least 2 tryouts to be considered for a team.
ATB will field teams in grades 5 – 8; 4th graders are eligible to attend.
Thorough Testing
Sometimes mold is easy to spot, but you don’t know how deep inside your walls it has spread. It can grow in sinks, cabinets, and other places you frequent every day. If you find mold, the question remains: Do I call a professional? Thistle Environmental, LLC believes in quality, comprehensive testing.
CALL NOW: (703) 929-4036
Equality Arlington Coming Out Party
Come celebrate National Coming Out Day at Equality Arlington’s Coming Out Party on Wednesday, October 11th from 7-8:30 PM at Busboys and Poets (Shirlington)! Senator Adam Ebbin is our featured speaker and we will have Arlingtonians sharing what coming out
NY Cat Film Festival
Experience through film the beauty of our relationships to cats. This unique film is a compilation of shorts with a feline theme which premieres every year in New York City and then travels to venues across the United States. This