After eight years serving up slow-cooked barbecue and community spirit, Bruce Yeomans is closing his well-known Fayetteville food truck. The announcement has drawn thousands of reactions and a wave of support online.
Yeomans announced the closure in a social media post that quickly caught the attention of the community. 'After a long thought process, I've decided to get out (of) the food truck business,' Yeomans said in his announcement.
The response was immediate, with longtime customers and barbecue fans flooding his pages with memories and well wishes.
Since launching the truck in 2018, Yeomans, a Fayetteville native and Navy veteran, has become a staple across town, the county, and on Fort Bragg. His food truck, hard to miss with its military pride, has been more than just a place to eat; it's been a fixture in local culture.
Known for his brisket, ribs, and chicken, Yeomans' menu has satisfied countless appetites.
But Yeomans' effect reaches far beyond barbecue.
In recent years, he helped coordinate the region's Black barbecue cook-offs in Fayetteville from 2022 to 2024, elevating other Black pitmasters.
Most of the contestants were White. You have a total 52-something teams. You have two Black teams, and I knew there was a lot of guys that I knew from the Fayetteville area. And we all wanted to get together and do something to bring us more back into the competition area there to be able to compete, Yeomans said.
He also mentored entrepreneurs as they launched their own food trucks, offering guidance and support.
Now, health concerns are forcing Yeomans to step back.
I'm due to have knee surgery Nov. 28th for knee replacement, and that started taking a toll on me. Then you look at the economy where prices are going up, and you, as a small business, the only way to be able to survive, you have to raise these prices. And I had such loyal customer, customers base, it was a little hard for me to actually do that, he explained.
Even as the food truck closes, Yeomans says the connections he's made will endure.
I want to thank everybody who ever came out to the truck, who bought food, he said.
For now, Yeomans is grateful for the community's support. He'll take time to recover and slow down, and the food truck is up for sale.
