Kabul’s middle-class hops on food truck trend

Truck shop: An Afghan customer buying a burger from a Lazeez food truck in Kabul, reflecting the city’s emerging middle class embracing the novelty of canteens-on-wheels. — AFP

KABUL: When the first Lazeez food truck arrived in Kabul many mistook it for a rickshaw and wanted to hail a ride -- the yellow chassis and three wheels so reminiscent of taxis popular in South Asia. But it took little time for the city’s emerging middle class to embrace the novelty of canteens-on-wheels serving Western fast foods around town. 

Parked on one of the capital’s busiest roads, Obaidullah’s truck -- emblazoned with a giant hot dog, and the Lazeez logo -- is unmissable. He serves a handful of customers, who are seemingly undeterred by the roadside pollution, and bullish about the sourcing and sanitation of the meat. “Us Afghans are immune to all sorts of illnesses,” jokes Mohammed -- an oral hygiene student buying a quick burger.