Sounds of sizzling grills, laughter, orders being placed and live music in the background form a type of music Ronnie Givens hears only when he is cooking up his specialty sandwiches at Rhythm & Food.
“Music and food are my two favorite things,” Givens said.
Givens and Lucricia Dotson own and operate the Athens-based food trailer. The partners opened for business in 2022.
“COVID had everything shut down,” Givens said. “I'm a people person. I like to socialize. I like connecting with different people. And it seemed like all that was coming to an end. There was a lot of just delivery food; nobody could go sit down in the restaurants and socialize. And I'm like, ‘What can I do that could bring the food to the people?’”
With Givens' more than 20 years between contract food services, cooking in the military and training at the Art Institute of Cincinnati for culinary arts, paired with Dotson’s experience in hospitality, the partners had the skills to start serving.
Givens said getting the trailer ready was a little bumpy, with not much knowledge about working with electrical components. Givens said it was an “overhaul” to get the trailer up to code, but deciding what food to serve was easy.
“I was like, ‘I just want to do sandwiches,’” Givens said. “It'll be something that I can get out fast. I like sandwiches. It's something that people can grab and go and don't have to wait too long for.”
Prices range from $6 to $12 for the sandwiches with drink options as well. Gluten-free bread and vegan cheese are also available to accommodate dietary needs and preferences.
Once it was up and running, Givens said the truck was a change of pace.
“Before I started this, I was in corporate dining and contract food service,” Givens said. “I felt like I was a hamster on one of those wheels, and every day I come in, and I do the same thing in the same place, with not that many windows … This gives me a chance to be out there … talking to different people, hearing music, hearing bands, seeing reactions, really connecting with the community.”
Dotson and Givens sometimes have two additional workers on the sandwich line. The fast-paced environment on a busy day has a different feel than an office job, Givens said, though it is not devoid of challenges.
“We've all been working with each other now for a couple years, so our crew is all used to each other,” Givens said. “We know when somebody needs to tag out and cover the register or tag out and jump on the grill.”
The trailer can be found at events in and around Athens, like the Ohio Pawpaw Festival and Nelsonville Music Festival.
“My mom used to cook on Sundays,” Givens said. “She's cooking food and cleaning the house, but always got music playing. Now, I'm cooking food and there's music playing because there's bands at the event or something; it's an awesome feeling.”
Even without a live performance, cooking provides a groove where Givens can find himself.
"When I'm in that zone and I'm cooking my food, there's a song being played, and it's like a rhythm to the cooking,” Givens said. “You're hearing the sizzle of the grill, and you're looking at all the different colors, and you're putting everything together, and you're just creating a song, and then you see people eating and laughing and talking.”
The conjunction of food and music is something both owners enjoy. Givens said he and Dotson are always on the lookout for food trucks and bars when traveling.
Dotson said seeing Givens’ passion for cooking is one of her favorite aspects about owning the trailer.
“He does all the cooking — I try to stay away from it — but having that opportunity to at least be there while he's doing what he loves and being a part of it,” Dotson said. “Being a part of it is where it matters; that's what is most important to me.”
When Rhythm & Food first opened, customers could build their own sandwich with opportunities to create special combinations. The trailer transitioned to a menu of modifiable sandwiches.
“Keeping a simpler menu with about four items works better than having all this other stuff that may not get ordered, or it'll take too long to get it out the window,” Givens said.
Some of Rhythm & Food’s most popular sandwiches are classic combinations, including the chicken bacon ranch and the cheesy grilled cheese, with American cheese and cheese sauce.
Other sandwiches are Givens’ creations. The heavy on the hog features bacon, pickles, pulled pork and cheddar cheese on Texas toast.
“This is a massive sandwich,” Givens said. “So you couldn't just call it pulled pork and cheese. I was like, ‘this is heavy on the hog.’”
Natasia Steele, a sophomore studying early childhood education, never tried Rhythm & Food before. Although Steele is not the biggest fan of meat and cheese, she said she would try most of the menu.
Steele said the caprese sandwich, with tomato, mozzarella, balsamic reduction and pesto, sounds like her “wildest dreams” and “so yum.”
Dotson and Givens plan to come up with additional sandwich ideas and find rhythm in the kitchen with support from Athens’ locals.
“It's a real humbling experience,” Givens said. “It makes you feel like you're just not punching the clock; you're doing something you love. You're with people you love, people that care about you. And although it's stressful at times, we're also having fun on there.”
