Cameron Davies and Ricky Ortiz, the founders of Cruising Kitchens and El Camino, are cooking up something new for the community — the 300,000-square-foot Cruising Kitchens Commissary at 702 San Fernando St. The project aims to serve as a business incubator for food truck operators and other local entrepreneurs.
Davies and Ortiz expect to open their new West Side commissary project within 3-4 months. The pair rose to prominence with their respective business projects. Davies runs Cruising Kitchens, a food truck manufacturing concept. Ortiz is most known for his multiple food truck park concepts, including El Camino and Besame, the latter of which he sold in 2024. Ortiz also owns Perfect Tender on Babcock Road.
The space will have shared kitchens, cold and dry storage, dishwashing, and trailer parking, but the space won’t just cater to day-to-day needs. The team also plans to offer brand consulting and marketing support.
Likening their new business incubator as a “Geekdom for the food community,” Davies and Ortiz noted that they noticed a trend of restaurateurs steering away from storefronts in favor of food trucks.
Given the disheartening onslaught of brick-and-mortar restaurant closures (more than 30 shuttered in 2024, let alone the recent 2025 restaurant fatalities), Ortiz and Davies aim to provide business consultation services for locals eager to try their hand with a food concept, in addition to providing a space for existing food truck operators to park their trucks, enhance their business models and offer industrial space for food prep.
Food trucks are often a way for aspiring food entrepreneurs to test a new concept before taking on the overhead of a brick-and-mortar restaurant. Popular eateries like Pumpers, Benjie’s Munch, and Box St. All Day started as trailers before opening permanent locations.
“Our goal is to create an entire ecosystem for food trucks,” says Davies. “It’s like food trucks for dummies.”
The business partners added that they’ll help owners through the tedious inspection process necessary to open and operate new food trucks. The game plan? The pair will serve as a “consulting arm” for locals eager to get their foot in the door, providing support one step at a time.
