A humble blue shack popped up by the Port of Nome this week. Inside, handmade burritos for workers on the go are being dished out by longtime Nome resident John Godsey — or as most people around town know him, “Caribou Jack.”
He’s nearly 70 years old and is best known for his folk guitar performances. But now he’s taken on a new role, feeding the early morning crowd with hearty breakfast burritos from his food trailer, Caribou Jack’s Sluicebox.
On his first day, he sold all 20 burritos he had prepared.
“Second day, I put 40,” Godsey said. “Yesterday, I ran out. Today, I put 80 and I still got probably 20 left. I'm gonna sell them through lunch."
An hour later, they were all gone.
Godsey said he gets up at 3:00 a.m., drives 11 miles to town and starts prep work by 4:00 a.m.
After prep he fires up a generator and gets his grill going. The menu is updated daily with Wednesday's including breakfast burritos filled with reindeer sausage, bacon, or chicken — each packed with eggs, hash browns, and onions. He said the menu is designed to be filling, nutritious and quick.
“The inspiration behind the menu is to give a blue collar worker something he can grab and go,” Godsey said. “It’s wrapped in foil, he can put it on a muffler or a heater.”
Godsey said work on the trailer began back in February. The foundation is an eight-wheeled Argo plastic trailer with everything above it being built by hand.
“Except for the steel, the wood was all taken from job sites from two years ago,” Godsey explained.
The setup may be modest, but Godsey made sure to do everything by the book. He said he has a food handler’s license, a food permit and passed inspections. For him, the work is worth it.
“I’m here to supply a service, and I’m here to be friendly. I play music. I write songs. If you're not careful, I’ll write one about you,” Godsey added.
He said the food truck isn’t about making money, it’s about giving back to the community.
“The joy of service eventually, that’s what it all winds up to be. Personal satisfaction is knowing I make a bunch of people happy and fill their bellies," Godsey said.
Caribou Jack’s Sluicebox is currently open five days a week starting at 7 a.m. until he sells out. But he said he plans to cut back to three days a week to support other local restaurants.
“I've tried to put it where it doesn't compete with anybody in town,” he said. "We're all still friends, and we don't take money from each other.”
