With a strong artistic and entrepreneurial spirit but few local opportunities to apply his passions, Alex Weller, owner and operator of Weller BBQ Food Truck forged his own path. “I grew up in Grand Haven. There are only two options: either work in factories or restaurants,” said Alex. “So, I’ve cooked in restaurants my whole life. I got to the point, eventually, working in restaurants where I just didn’t care about cooking food that I wasn’t passionate about.”

After having a craving for Texas brisket one afternoon but with no local offerings that pleased him, Alex bought a smoker and got to work. “I always wanted to open my own restaurant, but it didn’t really seem feasible money-wise. A food truck seemed like the easiest avenue to get into.”

At the same time, Alex was working in restaurants, he was also sharpening his welding skills through courses. “I went to school for welding and I ended up using my welding skills and all of my knowledge of the trades to build my food truck. And that’s kind of how we got into the business—built a food truck in my driveway.”

While the pandemic has impacted almost every business sector, Alex explained that he and his colleagues in the food truck industry are used to dealing with the unexpected, which meant the impact was less jarring. “You’re always adapting, you’re always doing something. There’s always some problem everywhere you go that you’re going to have to adapt to every time.”

Diving further into the entrepreneur lifestyle, Alex has embraced the ability to live his life on his own terms and has also taken the chance to continue developing new things. His most recent venture is custom roasted coffee beans. Keep an eye on the Weller Barbecue Facebook page for the release of the coffee and to find out when and where you can get your grub on next.