If any bitcoiners visited Austin in recent years, they were probably encouraged to try ZIKI. Most of us knew it as a fleet of mexican-greek fusion food trucks with great tasting, no-seed-oil, sludge-free food. To the dopamine drenched founder, it was "multi-decade, global-scale conquest to build the most significant company to ever exist in food."1 And a vision to "become the fastest-growing restaurant company on the planet, with unstoppable unit economics."1
ZIKI had at least 8 locations in Austin by Feb 2023. By the time they acquired an automated bowl filling machine company six months later, it had 10 locations. ZIKI was also no longer just a food truck fleet; it was a "restaurant concept" owned by The Food Company which also planned to launch Big Farma, farmer's markets in pods.2 We were all rooting for them when they closed down and stopped taking orders some time early in 2024 (my last order from them in Feb 2024).
Most of us expected the shutdown to be temporary. There was never an official announcement about the closings, the food trucks remained shuttered but in-place for the most part, and the company continued to tweet about how it's "RE-ARCHITECTING THE TOXIC FOOD SYSTEM AT ENORMOUS SCALE" as late as Sep 2024.3 Today, the ZIKI 3rd street location disappeared.4
| 2/7/25 | 2/15/25 |
With any luck, they'll mount a more sober return soon. A bunch of us miss them. If not, RIP quezzadilla, my love.
Do you have a food fling that was cut too short?
Some of their menu stuffs.