In Japan there is a man who sells roasted sweet potato treats from the back of his NC-generation Mazda MX-5 and advertises on Twitter, because of course there is. The Yokohama native, who goes by Eroko-san, is incredibly proud of his city, and uses his nights promoting young folks to come out and enjoy the city’s shopping and entertainment offerings.
Eroko has grown something of a cult following for his delicious potatoes. To find out where he will park every night, users take to Twitter to follow his instructions for finding the “Yokohama Rodo Pot”, a shortening of rodosuta (roadster) and poteto (potato).
Local potato enthusiasts seek out his RodoPot for a delicious evening snack, so much so that the car and the chef alike have become minor celebrities. He’s even had some fan-art of the car tweeted at him.
The famed potato man says he was inspired when he saw a portable food stand selling noodles out of an old Toyota Century as a youngster. Once he decided to jump into this game himself, he imported the tow hitch and rear basket from outside of Japan, and he was tasked with finding a shop he could trust to install them. The added rear basket carries wood to burn, plenty of extra potatoes, and all of his other cooking supplies. Since then it’s been nightly potato sales.
The cost to convert his MX-5 into a mobile kitchen was said to be around 500,000 Yen (about $4700), and he sells each potato for around 300 Yen (about $3). It’ll take a lot of potatoes to recoup that initial cost, but he seems to be excited about this side business and it’s become the talk of the town. If you’re ever in Yokohama, check Twitter and try a RodoPot.
Hat Tip to Paulo Acoba