Having arrived in Australia from Spain over 13 years ago, chef Francisco Pulido sought to indulge in his two passions, cooking and travel – his IVECO Daily allows him to do both… And at once.

While most food truck operators choose to cook from specially designed bodies that are built on the cab chassis, Francisco has taken a different route, decking out his truck with a Pantech body that features all the comforts of home, while the cooking for his business, ‘Canarian Cuisine’ is done from a 6m food trailer that he tows behind the Daily.

The colourful chef’s rationale becomes a little clearer once you learn his itinerary. Each March he leaves his homebase in Perth and travels north for six months, attending events and markets across northern Western Australia and the Northern Territory, taking in towns including Karratha, Newman, Alice Springs, Katherine, Darwin and others. When in Perth he visits more local events – combined, it’s a schedule that sees him cover a huge number of kilometres. 

Purchased last year, the Daily is providing Francisco with the added space and performance that he needed in this dual function vehicle.

“The Daily is the first real truck I’ve owned, before this I used two smaller vans,” he said.

“One of the main reasons for getting the Daily was that it allowed me to fit a 2.4m (W) by 5.2m (L) body for living accommodation, while still giving me the power and GVM to tow a large food trailer, which houses cool rooms and a multi burner gas cooking set-up.”

Francisco uses this combination to cook one of Spain’s most loved dishes, paella, of which he provides several options, from the traditional to more contemporary version, including several of his own creation.

Hailing from the Spanish archipelago of the Canary Islands, Francisco also makes several flavoursome sauces of the region, known as ‘Mojo Canario’, which he sells at events, through selective IGA outlets in WA as well as from the www.cheffranciscosauces.com.au website.    

Given the time that Francisco can spend on the road travelling between the cities and towns of outback Australia, it’s little wonder that the Daily’s high comfort levels and safety features were also attractive to him. 

“It’s reassuring to have the extra technology and safety equipment of the Daily – the four airbags, emergency braking, adaptive cruise control and so on, it’s nice to know it’s there,” Francisco said.

“I’m also very pleased with the automatic transmission, the changes are so smooth and driving the truck is easy, especially when combined with the engine which is very responsive.”

Francisco’s Daily is equipped with IVECO’s mid-range 3.0 litre Euro6 engine which produces 132kW and 430Nm of torque.

Purchased from AV Trucks in Perth, the chef returns there for dealer servicing and speaks highly of his customer experience. 

“The dealership was very good during the sales process and also assisted with fitting extra-long mirror arms, to help get the truck to a specification that would best meet my needs,” he said.