Plaka on Wheels food truck catches fire

A fire burned through a decades-long local family business that is still recovering after Hurricane Ian.

Until Monday, Plaka on Wheels prepared hundreds of homemade Greek dishes inside their food truck.

“We had just finished up, we had a great lunch booking. We were down at the Lee County School District, they were great,” said Victoria Neskes, the wife of the owner of Nomiki’s Plaka Greek Restaurant and Plaka on Wheels. “We finished it up, got back here, turned everything off on the truck. We had to go and refuel, and in that time, we had a man run through the back of the restaurant screaming your food truck is on fire.”

Their truck was up in flames, and in a panic, the Neskes sprang into action.

“My husband had to try to get in there and put the fire out. Yeah, busted his arm through the window like Hulk and trying to put out the fire with the fire extinguisher,” said Neskes. “Everything was fine. Everybody was OK, but unfortunately, it did fry the electrical system. The air conditioning unit was what they think caught fire.”

With their truck booked and busy until next year, the Neskes still clung to hope despite seeing all the damage.

“We get an electrician out here, and we really go inside, and we’re like, this is not going to work,” said Neskes.

Scared for the future, the Neskes felt they were back to where they were in 2022 when Hurricane Ian took their restaurant on the beach.

“It’s kind of scary to go from where we were to kind of back to square one. As far as the food truck goes,” said Neskes.

Still, they remain hopeful. With the community’s support and help from their insurance, they’re looking for a new truck.

“Ready to get back out there, get back on the road and back to feeding people and doing what we love,” said Neskes.

That love and passion drives this family to keep going despite all they’ve had to overcome since Ian.

So don’t worry, the Neskes say, you’ll see their truck hit the roads in no time.