WS Chronicle

Big Dawg Food Truck and Catering’s stint at the fair created a solid fan following

Without any training from a top-rated culinary school or big name chef, a few years ago Winston-Salem native Robert Turner took a leap of faith and started his own catering business. And in less than two years, Turner has one of the most popular food trucks in the Triad. 

At this year’s Carolina Classic Fair, Turner’s Five Cheese Mac & Cheese was a hit at the fair. It finished in the top five out of 80 food entries for the “Best Food” contest. Although it may seem like Turner is an  overnight success, he will be the first to tell you that it has been a journey. 

“I’ve had my ups and downs but I feel like everything happens for a reason,” Turner said. 

A 2012 graduate of North Carolina Central University (NCCU) with a bachelor’s in psychology, shortly after he earned his degree, Turner was arrested and sentenced to two years in prison. “Graduating from college then going and doing some time really gave me a new perspective on life,” said Turner while reflecting on his time spent in prison. “It gave me time to think about what I did and didn’t want out of life and I knew I had to make a change.” 

And that’s exactly what he did. Shortly after he was released, Turner got full custody of his daughter, who was only three years old at the time. Turner said raising his daughter by himself was one of the toughest challenges he ever faced, but it has also made him a better person and he wouldn’t have it any other way. 

“I’ve had my daughter since she was three, she’s 14 now,” Turner said. “You can only imagine what kind of roller coaster that has been, trying to raise a little girl by yourself.”

Around the same time Turner started working at a rehabilitation facility in Lexington. Turner said although he enjoyed working in the field he went to school for, something was missing. 

“I was working, but deep down I wanted to branch off and do my own thing. I was still trying to find my purpose and at the same time I wanted to show my daughter what it means to be your own boss and build something from the ground up,” Turner said. “I went through a whole phase of just trying to understand what I wanted to do with my life and I decided to give cooking a try.”

Turner started by selling plates at local events and his cousin, Demontae Patterson, let him use his kitchen to sell plates during the week. A few months later Turner started catering small events and the Big Dawg Catering was born. 

About a year after he started taking cooking seriously, Turner took his business venture a step further and purchased a food truck. “I spent my life’s savings on this truck only to be sold a dud, bad engine, bad transmission, and it kinda crushed me … I had high hopes of being able to do something on my own, only to be tricked,” Turner said.

It took about two years to meet all the requirements needed to operate a food truck and all the repairs to be made. Turner said he admits during that time he felt like giving up but he continued to believe; and Patterson was there to give him the push he needed to keep going. “He just called me one day and basically told me to get off my butt,” Turner laughed. 

“We came together, he started helping … he started scheduling events anywhere the truck could make it. We would break down sometimes, but we did it, and people started to hear about it and it grew. He played a major role in the success of this truck. He was here from day one, he was very inspirational, very smart, and he knew a lot about restaurant management.”

Then tragedy hit: Earlier this year Patterson died following a dirt bike accident.

Turner was crushed when he got the news of his cousin’s death and he took a few months off as a result. With inspiration from his daughter, his girlfriend, Samantha Vandeventer, and the thought of keeping his cousin’s memory alive through the business, Turner reopened Big Dawg Food Truck with more energy than ever. 

A few months before the Carolina Classic Fair, Vandeventer started researching information on how to become a vendor. Vandeventer, who was only a friend and customer at the time, also did a lot of the research to help Turner find a food truck. While Vandeventer handled the paperwork, Turner made sure everything on the truck was in order and when it came time to submit the application, they were ready. 

“She’s (Vandeventer) very good at being on top of things and she just stayed consistent, calling, making sure they had our application, seeing what we needed done, and every task they gave us we were able to complete,” Turner said. 

The first day of the fair didn’t go as well as they had hoped, but it didn’t take long for things to turn around. By the third day of the fair, word of Big Dawg Food Truck started to spread like wildfire on social media, and before long people were making special trips to the fair just to try Turner’s cooking. As mentioned earlier, Turner’s mac & cheese was a hit at the fair – it finished in the top five out of 80 food entries for the “Best Food” contest. Other favorites included the chicken wings and the hibachi, which comes with chicken, steak, shrimp, or salmon. All food is made to order, which means it’s always hot and fresh.

Except for that slow first day, Turner  sold out every day of the Carolina Classic Fair. Big Dawg Food Truck also received an invite to the North Carolina State Fair in Raleigh. 

While reflecting on how far he has come in such a short time, Turner said Big Dawgs wouldn’t be what it is today without God and the support he has received from his family and hundreds of customers. In addition to growing his business, Turner said he also wants to serve as inspiration for young Black men to strive for greatness. 

“I wouldn’t be able to be where I am today if I didn’t have God and the right people around me cheering me on,” Turner continued. “I can say it’s really been a journey, but I keep God in me and I just continue to follow. I just follow his path every step of the way.”

For more information including a menu, times and locations, follow Big Dawg Catering and Food Truck on Facebook and @bigdawgfoodtruck on Instagram.